The Series B funding has been provided by funds managed by Zouk Capital and Hermes GPE as well as from existing shareholders. Channel 4’s Commercial Growth Fund and Aggregate Media Fund have also participated in the round. The company will use the funds to further its international expansion and support growth in its existing markets.
Per Hellberg, CEO at Readly: “With the smartphone and tablet at the heart of providing entertainment and education, it is unsurprising that the demand for accessing a huge variety of magazines via an app has become second nature. This new round of funding allows Readly to bring more titles to a wider audience in more countries and fulfil our aim of being at the cutting edge of the revolution in digital publishing. We have seen dramatic growth over the past twelve months, with 100% increase in paying subscribers in 2016 and these growth rates are continuing into 2017. We are delighted to have the support of our existing investors and to welcome new partners on board.”
Readly offers an app for tablets and smartphones that lets customers have unlimited access to 2,000 titles from over 400 publishers for a fixed monthly subscription.
Nathan Medlock, General Partner at Zouk Capital added, “Readly is already the European market leader in providing unlimited-access digital magazine content. Globally, the consumer magazine market is worth nearly €35bn and Readly is at the forefront of the digital revolution that is transforming this space. Readly plays to our own strengths and expertise in technology growth investing as well as demonstrating a clear sustainability benefit.”
