Clubhouse Said To Get $4B Valuation In Latest Funding As Rivals Inch Closer

The audio-based social media startup Clubhouse announced Sunday it had secured an undisclosed amount of funding in a  Series C round led by existing investor Andrew Chen, of Andressen Horowitz, as it looks to scale up in face of rising competition.

What Happened: Clubhouse named DST Global, Tiger Global Management, and Elad Gil as investors who participated in the funding round, which according to a Reuters report, values the company at $4 billion. 

Bloomberg News had earlier this month reported that the startup is looking to raise fresh money at a $4 billion valuation.

The fresh funding comes just three months after its previous funding and amid a growing interest of rivals in launching a similar product. 

See Also: Twitter Looked To Acquire Clubhouse In $4B Deal: Report

Facebook Inc FB will on Monday announce a suite of new audio products, including its own take on Clubhouse, as well as a push into podcasts aided by Spotify Technology S.A. SPOT, according to a Recode report.

The San Francisco-based Clubhouse allows app users to host their own online podcast shows. Listeners can tune in to hear interviews or discussions on a range of subjects and also participate in live discussions. It has recently introduced a feature that will help creators monetize their content via the app.

The buzzy app has rapidly added new members after securing endorsements and appearances from celebrities such as Tesla Inc TSLA CEO Elon Musk and Facebook's Mark Zuckerburg.

Why It Matters: The startup, barely a year old, has seen its popularity rise, forcing more established rivals like Twitter Inc TWTR, Microsoft Corp-owned LinkedIn MSFT, Facebook, and Slack Technologies Inc WORK, to try out Clubhouse-like audio features on their platforms.  

Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey is bullish on the potential of the social audio-chat feature and is trying out Spaces, currently in beta form and it is expected to be launched soon. 

Clubhouse is currently a free-to-use app and available only on Apple Inc’s AAPL iOS platform. It currently does not run any advertisements. The startup is exploring options to make the app available on the Android platform as well.

Price Action: Facebook shares closed 0.53% lower at $306.18 on Friday, and Twitter closed 2.22% lower at $70.12.

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