LBG Media, owner Ladbible Group, has acquired Betches, a US-based media brand founded by women, for women. LBG Media has a global social following of over 410 million and generates over 100bn views annually through its brands such Ladbible, Unilad, Gamingbible and Sportbible. LBG said the acquisition strengthens its ambitious growth strategy through acceleration of its presence in the US, where it already has a team and over 100m social followers.

Betches is a market-leading brand for women aged 18-34 globally, complementary to Ladbible Group’s strength within Gen Z audiences. With an average monthly social reach of 250 million, Betches has a highly engaged following across a number of passion points, including comedy, parenting, weddings, travel, and entertainment.

Betches was established in New York in 2011 by three female founders, who are remaining with the business post-acquisition. Betches is a brand founded by women, for women, with humour and authenticity at its heart – it delivers its unique perspective through social, branded partnerships, live-events, merchandise, podcasts and newsletters.

Similarly, LBG Media was born in 2011 whilst its founders were at university. At its heart is the mission to uplift and inspire the world’s youth. It uses its global reach as a force for change across topics including mental health, the environment and violence against women.

As one example, Ladbible Group successfully lobbied the British government to change its laws to allow gay and bisexual men to be able to donate blood on the same terms as the heterosexual community ,and also created the Trash Isles campaign to empower young people to lobby the United Nations to acknowledge the plastic in our oceans as a country.

“The joining of LBG and Betches is a step change for LBG Media and an incredibly exciting milestone in the Group’s story, delivering on a key strategic priority of US expansion,” said LBG CEO, Solly Solomou. “The Betches story is similar to ours, founded during university and growing to a brand that is at the heart of youth culture – it is a perfect fit for the LBG Media family. We are all excited to work with the talented Betches team and get started on the opportunities ahead.”