Match Group Announces Executive Management Appointments

DALLAS, Nov. 15, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Match Group (NASDAQ: MTCH) today announced a series of internal leadership appointments to coincide with Mandy Ginsberg's planned assumption of the Company's CEO role by January 1, 2018. These include:

    --  Elie Seidman, currently CEO of OkCupid, will become Tinder's new CEO,
        reporting into Ms. Ginsberg.
    --  Amarnath Thombre, currently Chief Strategy Officer at Match Group, will
        become CEO of Match Group Americas, where he will oversee Match, Match
        Affinity Brands, PlentyOfFish, OkCupid and Match's Latin America
        businesses, reporting into Ms. Ginsberg.
    --  Hesam Hosseini, currently CEO of PlentyOfFish, will become CEO of Match
        and Match Affinity Brands, reporting into Mr. Thombre.

Said incoming Match Group CEO Ms. Ginsberg, "Match Group is in the strongest position it's ever been, with its core businesses stabilized and a fantastic growth engine at Tinder. The changes announced today reflect the deep bench of talent across our organization, enabling us to tap into a collective 20 years of Company expertise from trusted leaders with proven track records."

"Elie is a perfect combination of entrepreneurial DNA and institutional know-how," said Ms. Ginsberg. "Since becoming OkCupid's CEO 18 months ago, he has revitalized the culture, the brand and the product, and reversed the business' trajectory in an unexpectedly short period of time. A true rising star in this Company, I'm excited to unleash his considerable talents on Tinder, our fastest growing business."

"Amarnath is a longtime veteran of Match Group, who has been deeply involved in virtually every major success this company has had over the past eight years," continued Ms. Ginsberg. "I know that his impact on Match Group Americas will be profound, and I can't wait to work with him closely in this new role."

"Hesam is another proven leader at this company who has run PlentyOfFish since its acquisition two years ago," said Ms. Ginsberg. "His sharp consumer sensibility and analytical product rigor have resulted in continued strong performance at PlentyOfFish. He was instrumental in creating a seamless transition for the company post acquisition, and has been a strong leader to the team. I'm confident he'll bring those same skills and deftness to this new role."

These changes will each take effect by January 1, 2018. Match Group is actively recruiting to fill the CEO positions at both OkCupid and PlentyOfFish.

Elie Seidman, Chief Executive Officer, OkCupid
Elie Seidman joined OkCupid as CEO in 2016, and oversees all aspects of the business, including strategy, product, technology and marketing. A veteran company founder, Mr. Seidman has over 20 years of experience leading and building consumer tech companies, and previously was the co-founder and CEO of startups Oyster.com and Epana. He holds a BSE in Engineering from the University of Pennsylvania.

Amarnath Thombre, Chief Strategy Officer, Match Group
Amarnath Thombre currently serves as the Chief Strategy Officer of Match Group, where he oversees strategy, research and analytics. Mr. Thombre has served in multiple roles since joining the company in 2008, including President, Match North America and Vice President, Analytics. Prior to that, Mr. Thombre held various management and strategy roles at i2 Technologies, Inc., where he worked closely with multiple consumer businesses in order to drive the company's growth through supply chain innovation. He holds an undergraduate degree in Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology in Mumbai and a master's in Engineering from the University of Arizona.

Hesam Hosseini, Chief Executive Officer, PlentyOfFish
Hesam Hosseini currently serves as CEO of PlentyOfFish. Previously, Mr. Hosseini led high growth and cross-portfolio initiatives across marketing, product and technology at Match Group. Mr. Hosseini has served in multiple roles since joining Match Group in 2008, including GM of New Initiatives and GM of Match International. Prior to that, Mr. Hosseini held various management roles at technology startups and was a consultant with McKinsey & Company.

About Match Group

Match Group (NASDAQ: MTCH) is the world's leading provider of dating products. We operate a portfolio of over 45 brands, including Match, Tinder, PlentyOfFish, Meetic, OkCupid, Pairs, Twoo, OurTime, BlackPeopleMeet and LoveScout24, each designed to increase our users' likelihood of finding a romantic connection. Through our portfolio of trusted brands, we provide tailored products to meet the varying preferences of our users. We currently offer our dating products in 42 languages across more than 190 countries.

About Tinder

Launched in 2012, Tinder is the world's leading social app for meeting new people. With its global reach, people in all 196 countries around the world are swiping right to connect with others. Each day, 26 million matches are made on Tinder with more than 20 billion matches made to date. In December 2014, Tinder had zero paying members and it has rapidly grown to more than 2.5 million subscribers today, making it a top 5 grossing non-gaming app globally.

About OkCupid

OkCupid knows you're more substance than just selfie, and connects you with people as individual as you are. One of the most recognized dating websites and apps in the world, OkCupid uses a high-tech algorithm to connect people based on the deeper things, like beliefs and interests. Over 57,000,000 daters have used OkCupid since it was founded by in 2004, and today logins span 113 countries around the world. Acquired by Match Group in 2011, the company is headquartered in New York City. For more information, visit www.okcupid.com or @okcupid on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

About PlentyOfFish

PlentyOfFish (POF), a Match Group company, is one of the largest global online dating companies with 150 million registered users and 65,000 new daily users. Available in 11 languages and more than 20 countries, POF has more conversations than any other dating app, with 2.5 million happening every day. Unlike any dating offering today, singles have more quality conversations on POF, which can lead to stronger connections, smarter matches and better dates. For more information, please visit http://iac.com/brand/match-group.

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SOURCE Match Group