Twitter explored ShareChat acquisition to turn Moj into TikTok rival

Twitter, an American microblogging and social networking service firm, had reportedly tried buying the Indian social media startup ShareChat and use its short video platform Moj as a global competitor to TikTok.

Sources close to the matter stated that Twitter, being an investor in ShareChat, had offered to acquire the startup for USD 1.1 billion with an additional investment of USD 900 million. ShareChat, which is also backed by India Quotient, Elevation Capital, and Lightspeed Partners India has amassed revenues worth USD 260 million to date.

The negotiations did not materialize into a contract, although the American tech firm had expressed an interest in acquiring Moj to expand its position in international markets and compete with the Chinese app Tiktok.

The ban on Tiktok in India has opened several opportunities for international giants and local startups to try their hands at short-form video format. Moj has emerged as one of the biggest players in the category, with over 80 million users recorded to date.

Reportedly, U.S.-based camera and social media company Snap Inc. had also touted a deal with ShareChat earlier this month to incorporate its Camera Kit into the Indian short-video app. This is the first time that Snap has formed this kind of relationship with an Indian firm.

However, ShareChat resumed discussions with other investors including Snap and Google, for its latest funding round with the buyout bid no longer being entertained.

Ankush Sachdeva, Chief Executive and co-founder of ShareChat, mentioned that the startup’s marquee app was exponentially growing with users spending over 30 minutes a day on the service.

For those unaware, ShareChat was in talks with Snap and Google, along with some established investors including Twitter, to raise over USD 200 million funds. The investment talks were prolonged by a possible takeover by Twitter.

Source Credit –

https://techcrunch.com/2021/02/21/twitter-explored-buying-indian-startup-sharechat-and-positioning-moj-as-a-global-tiktok-rival/