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Tinder CEO Jim Lanzone will swipe left on his current role to take up the top job at Yahoo just days after it was acquired by Apollo.
US web provider Yahoo has appointed former Tinder CEO Jim Lanzone as its new chief. The appointment comes days after Yahoo’s acquisition by investment firm Apollo.
Yahoo’s current CEO Guru Gowrappan will serve as an adviser to the company following its split with Verizon on 1 September. He joined Yahoo three years ago, and will serve as a senior adviser to Apollo once the transition comes into effect.
In a memo to Yahoo staff, Gowrappan said he was delighted to welcome Lanzone as the company’s new CEO effective from 27 September.
“Jim is a veteran technology and media leader with two decades of leadership experience and a deep track record of growth, innovation and an entrepreneurial spirit. I have every confidence he will be a terrific leader for the new Yahoo,” he wrote.
“Jim and I will work together to ensure a seamless transition, and I’m confident he will build on our successes and lead us into our future,” Gowrappan added.
Gowrappan continued as CEO of the company for several months after it was announced that Verizon planned to sell its media assets, including Yahoo, for $4.25bn in cash to Apollo.
Lanzone’s stint at Tinder lasted just over a year, but he previously worked at digital holding company IAC, which originally launched Tinder before its separation from Match Group.
Yahoo chair and Apollo partner, Reed Rayman, welcomed Lanzone’s move: “With his experience and proven management skills, we are confident Jim is the right leader to steward Yahoo through a transformational new phase that can leverage the best of Yahoo’s platform and performance to reach new heights,” he said.
Rayman also welcomed Gowrappan’s appointment as senior adviser and thanked him for his “significant contributions to the company”, as well as his willingness to pass “the baton following three consecutive quarters of double-digit growth.”
Lanzone’s break-up with Tinder paves the way for Renate Nyborg’s appointment as the dating site’s new CEO. Nyborg was previously Tinder’s head of EMEA.
Like Lanzone, she will begin her role as CEO on 27 September. She will be Tinder’s first woman CEO since its founding in 2012, and she will report to the CEO of Tinder’s parent company Match Group, Shar Dubey.
Nyborg said in a statement that she had a special place in her heart for Tinder as she met her husband on the app.
“I swiped right on my husband and it changed my life,” Nyborg said. “Being CEO of this company is a truly humbling and extraordinary opportunity; to make that happen for the next generation of singles around the world. The Tinder team is – hands down – the most innovative and inspiring group I’ve ever worked with. We are building the most fun, inclusive, safest place for singles to connect,” she concluded.
The dating app recently added new features to its service, which include additional safety measures for its users’ protection.
