Paktor is merging with the startup it bought to create a social entertainment company

Photo credit: Cher VernalEQ.

Singaporean dating app Paktor announced today it has merged with its recent acquisition, livestreaming service 17 Media, to form M17, a company focused on social entertainment. Paktor acquired a controlling interest Taiwan-based 17 Media for an undisclosed sum at the end of last year.

The new company claims to have a combined team of 200 and reports a 10-time increase in revenue across its teams in the last six months to US$100 million in annualized revenue (an estimate of revenue for a period of time).

It expects to achieve US$200 million in annualized revenue by year-end. It claims to reach a combined user base of 50 million. 17 Media reported a user base of 15 million when Paktor bought a controlling interest in it, although a press release mentions 30 million.

Paktor founder and CEO, Joseph Phua, will be group CEO of the new entity. Joseph had previously announced he would take over leadership duties for 17 Media.

M17 is expecting to close a new funding round in a few weeks with participation from Korean venture capital firm KTB, through its KTB China Synergy Fund.

Paktor had announced its ambition to grow into the social entertainment space as early as last November, when it raised US$32.5 million. This fueled a series of acquisitions like dating app Down (formerly known as Bang With Friends) and 17 Media.