Match Assembles More Diverse Board After Spinoff From IAC

(Bloomberg) -- Match Group Inc. is expanding its board and making it more diverse as the dating app giant becomes a newly independent company.

Owner of the world’s most popular dating apps like Tinder, Ok Cupid and Hinge, Match said it finalized its spinoff from IAC/InterActiveCorp. on Wednesday, leading to the departure of two board members and opening up room for four new directors, including more women and people of color.

The Dallas-based company, which was IAC’s top money-maker, said Melissa Brenner, Stephen Bailey, Wendi Murdoch and actor Ryan Reynolds will be taking a seat on the new board, which now totals 11 -- six men and five women. Three board members are people of color.

“Most millennials and Gen Z can’t remember what dating was like before the advent of Tinder, OkCupid and Hinge,” said Reynolds, a Canadian actor and co-founder of marketing agency Maximum Effort Productions, in a company statement. “These brands have enormous responsibility and opportunities to affect societies, all while embracing new technologies and remaining at the forefront of pop culture.”

Since the death of George Floyd sparked protests against police brutality and racial injustice across the U.S., corporate America has been lambasted for an entrenched lack of diversity in senior leadership roles. Many companies have since pledged to promote diversity and inclusion within their walls. Some, like Airbnb Inc., have set goals to have more people of color on their boards and executive teams by the end of the year.

Brenner is the executive vice president of digital media for the National Basketball Association. Bailey, a Black businessman and venture capitalist, is the founder and chief executive officer of ExecOnline, which partners with global business schools to deliver leadership development programs for companies. Chinese-born American entrepreneur Murdoch is the co-founder of Artsy, an online platform for collecting and selling art. She also worked as an adviser for News Corp.’s businesses and investments in China.

“Match Group’s impressive portfolio of brands allows them to operate around the world, in countries with very different social customs, attitudes towards dating and user behavior,” Murdoch said in the statement. “But these products are still in their infancy in many parts of the world, and I’m excited to be a part of the team that is so focused on accelerating this adoption on a global basis.”

Match CEO Shar Dubey, an immigrant from India, said the new members “bring extensive expertise across consumer tech, marketing, investing and emerging markets, which are critical components to the long-term growth of our portfolio.”

Mark Stein and Gregg Winiarski stepped down from Match’s board due to the spin-off from IAC. As a result of the separation, Match’s dual class voting structure has been eliminated and the interest in Match, which was formerly held by IAC, is now held directly by IAC’s shareholders, the companies said in a separate statement.

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