Princeton University's Friendsy Lands $500K from Lerer Hippeau Ventures and Slow Ventures

NEW YORK, Aug. 24, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Friendsy, a viral new social network for only college students, recently closed a $500,000 seed round with Lerer Hippeau Ventures (Buzzfeed, Casper, GroupMe) and Slow Ventures (Facebook, Hinge, Twitter).

Friendsy, the brainchild of recent Princeton graduates Vaidhy Murti and Michael Pinsky, has registered close to 100,000 users and 750,000 mutual matches after launching nationwide less than 6 months ago.

"We have been incredibly impressed by Vaidhy and Michael's ability to quickly build a lightweight social network that so many college students love and trust – all from their dorm room," said Taylor Greene, a Partner at Lerer Hippeau Ventures.

A Macalester College undergraduate wrote, "I think I just met my soulmate through Friendsy!!!" on the app.

Murti and Pinsky feel Facebook, Tinder, and Yik Yak don't sufficiently help students branch out of their limited social circles.

"We found that on Facebook, you only add people you already know," Murti noted. "We created Friendsy to be a place to make new connections, whether friendly, romantic, or somewhere in between."

Through the app, students can chat anonymously and make friendly and romantic matches when feelings are mutual. But Friendsy's main differentiator from Facebook, Tinder, and Yik Yak is its exclusive, private network of only verified college students with .edu email addresses, which gives students assurance that they are communicating with their peers.

University of Michigan junior Lindsey Sholes told USA TODAY, "I definitely feel like Friendsy is a little safer because it is more like a peer group than Tinder."

To date, Friendsy has raised a total of more than $700,000 from sources including Lerer Hippeau Ventures, Slow Ventures, and Princeton University to prepare for the back-to-school push this fall.

"We're excited to continue to build the next college social network," Pinsky said, "and we couldn't be more pleased to bring on these great investors to help us bring Friendsy to every college student in America."

Website: www.friendsyapp.com 
Press kit available on website. 
[email protected]

Contact: Michael Pinsky (917-880-5871), [email protected] 

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SOURCE Friendsy

Related Links

http://www.friendsyapp.com