As per Sky News, Singaporean firms Raine Group and Temasek Holdings have initiated discussions with investment banks for a potential auction of SoundCloud.
Founded in 2007, SoundCloud swiftly became synonymous with both underground and emerging artists. The platform boasts 375 million tracks from more than 40 million artists, as per the company’s statement. If this situation feels familiar, it’s not the first instance where SoundCloud faced uncertainty. In July 2017, reports suggested the platform had only seven weeks of funding remaining, despite implementing a 40% staff reduction. In August of the same year, a reported $170 million cash infusion from Raine Group and Temasek provided a lifeline, preventing the platform’s complete closure. However, it appears that the company’s challenges persisted.
According to TechCrunch, the struggling streaming platform executed a 20% reduction in its workforce in August 2022, followed by another 8% cut in May. At that time, SoundCloud CEO Eliah Seton mentioned that these measures aimed to steer the company toward profitability. An insider informed Sky News that the SoundCloud sale could unfold over the next few months.