This article contains promotional content .(December 2018) |
Company type | Private |
---|---|
Industry | Software |
Founded | 2009 |
Founders |
|
Headquarters | Amsterdam, Netherlands |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people |
|
Services | SaaS |
Revenue | €72m (2021) [1] |
Owner | Bending Spoons |
Number of employees | 350+ (2024) [2] |
Website | wetransfer |
WeTransfer B.V. is a Dutch Internet-based computer file transfer service company that was founded in 2009 and based in Amsterdam. [3] In 2024, the company was acquired by Bending Spoons. [4]
WeTransfer was founded in 2009 by Rinke Visser, Bas Beerens and Ronald Hans (Nalden) in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. [5] [3] It was created to enable the sharing of large files (up to 2 GB) free of charge. [6]
In 2012, WeTransfer implemented a re-design and introduced a paid-for 'Plus' tier with support for larger file transfers. [6] [7]
In 2014, WeTransfer launched "creative-class.tv", an ongoing video series. The company initiated its first bursaries that year through a collaborative partnership with Central Saint Martins. [8] These scholarships supported two students from around the globe in their full-time studies.
In 2015, WeTransfer raised a US$25 million Series A funding round from Highland Capital Partners Europe. [9] They also added venture capitalist Troy Carter to its board. [10] [11]
In 2016, WeTransfer announced the acquisition of digital design studio Present Plus, [12] established in 2010 by Damian Bradfield and WeTransfer co-founder Nalden. [12] In September, WeTransfer opened its first office in the United States at Venice Beach, Los Angeles. [13]
In early 2017, Gordon Willoughby became the company's Chief Executive Officer, taking over from Bas Beerens, who became Executive Chairman. [14]
In January 2018, WeTransfer launched a content arm called "WePresent". [15] In August, WeTransfer acquired app developer FiftyThree, who owned sketching app Paper and collaborative presentation app Paste. [16] In October, WeTransfer relaunched its mobile app under the name "Collect by WeTransfer". [17] [18]
In June 2019, WeTransfer experienced a security incident in which files were "sent to the wrong people". [19] In August, the company closed a €35 million secondary funding round led by HPE Growth. [20]
In May 2020, India banned WeTransfer, citing security reasons. [21] In June, the company became a certified B Corporation. [22]
In February 2021, WeTransfer claimed to have achieved carbon-neutral certification, having pledged the previous year to reduce emissions by 30% by 2025. [23] In March, the 2020 short film "The Long Goodbye" by Aneil Karia and Riz Ahmed commissioned by WeTransfer through WePresent won the 2022 Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film. [24] In April, the company launched a charitable arm known as "Supporting Act", focused on helping emerging creative talent, pledging to donate 1% of revenues from 2022 onwards. [25] In October, WeTransfer announced sales in 2020 of €65m. [26]
In April 2021, Reuters reported that the WeTransfer logos and likeness were used in high-profile phishing scams. [27]
In January 2022, WeTransfer planned for an IPO for a valuation of up to $800 million but ended up canceling the offering shortly before listing citing market volatility. [28]
In 2022, Alexandar Vassilev took over as the company's Chief Executive Officer. [29]
In May 2023, WeTransfer announced it reduced 78% of server emissions as part of its environmental commitments. [30]
In July 2024 Italian technology company Bending Spoons announced that it would acquire WeTransfer. [31]
In early September 2024, Bending Spoons' CEO Luca Ferrari announced that WeTransfer would be having layoffs, with 'up to 3/4 of the jobs' likely to be cut. [2] [32]
Bas Beerens founded the file-sharing platform WeTransfer [33] with Nalden (Ronald Hans) and Rinke Visser in 2009. [34]
Damian Bradfield joined the company as a "founding shareholder" in 2010. [35] Bradfield is currently WeTransfer's Chief Creative Officer.
Chief Executive Gordon Willoughby joined WeTransfer in January 2017. [36] He announced his departure from the company in May 2022 and was replaced by former Chief Technology Officer Alexandar Vassilev. [37]
Chief Financial Officer Melissa Nussbaum joined WeTransfer from King in September 2020. [38]
Martha Lane Fox joined WeTransfer as chair in July 2020. [39]
WeTransfer is based on Amazon's infrastructure and technology. It uses Amazon S3 for storage and for sending files. [40]
WeTransfer offers a free, limited service, and a paid option called "Pro" where users can send and store more data. [41] [42]
WeTransfer has a dual revenue model split between advertising and premium ("pro") subscriptions. [43]
WeTransfer displays full-screen advertisements while transferring [44] instead of banner ads. [45] The company donated 30% of the advertising inventory to creatives and charitable causes. [46]
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