Bending Spoons, a prominent player in the tech industry known for its ownership of popular applications such as Evernote and Meetup, has officially acquired the file transfer service WeTransfer. This forward-looking strategy comes to enrich Bending Spoons’ product ecosystem with the viral reach of WeTransfer’s presence, one of the recognized leaders in the creative community.
Luca Ferrari, the CEO of the app-development firm Bending Spoons, said he was thrilled to have the ownership of his company. He stated, “WeTransfer is a highly respected name in the technology and creative spaces. We’re enthusiastic about becoming its new owner, and we feel a strong sense of responsibility to help the brand and the business thrive for many years to come.”
With an equity financing of €155 million ($155 million) completed in late 2021, Bending Spoons was set up nicely for subsequent growth. We believe this acquisition matches their stated focus to continue their growth-through-acquisition strategy with new platforms that connect and support creative industries. WeTransfer boasts a jaw-dropping userbase of 80 million monthly active users and 600,000 subscribers. They have a Pro plan available starting at only $10 a month with 1TB of storage and the ability to send and receive files up to 200GB. WeTransfer offers a no-limits premium plan at $19 per month.
The acquisition follows recent widespread layoffs at Bending Spoons after Bending Spoons made similar acquisitions. Then in December 2023, the company laid off all employees at Filmic, a mobile photo and video editing app they acquired in 2022. In the news, in the first few months of this year, Bending Spoons cut 129 workers from Evernote’s workforce. This trend begs the question of what the future workforce will look like at WeTransfer.
Bending Spoons has committed to keeping 30% of WeTransfer’s advertising space free for impactful campaigns and editorial content that serve the community. This commitment shows an admirable depth of resolve to support creative endeavors, even as they brace for possible layoffs.
Alexandar Vassilev, the CEO of WeTransfer, highlighted the alignment between both companies’ missions: “Nurturing creative communities and amplifying their voices has been key to our success. Some of Bending Spoons’ most successful products are tools that serve creativity. Therefore we are confident that this milestone will complement both businesses, supercharge our growth, and help us create even more value for creative industries at large.”
Though WeTransfer had been eyeing an initial public offering of its own, the company pulled its IPO plans in September citing market volatility. Of course, the Bending Spoons acquisition opens up entirely new avenues for development and exploration within this fast-growing domain.