Rounds acquires and operates some of the most popular mobile apps with millions of monthly active users, including audio players, file recovery systems, remote controls, resume builders, photo editors, and more. Post-acquisition, the team utilizes proprietary machine-learning to evaluate various technical and business parameters for optimal performance. The software enables Rounds to manage hundreds of apps at scale, while continuously optimizing revenue and performance through ongoing monitoring, adjustments, and improving the consumer experience.

The company was co-founded in 2021 by five serial entrepreneurs with experience across complimentary sectors including advertising, consulting, ecommerce, technology, and mobile apps. After creating one of the most successful file recovery apps on Google Play with 40M+ installs, the two technology co-founders determined the backend software used to optimize their app’s revenue and consumer experience could be extended to other apps. The team soon began acquiring a few test apps and saw immediate success in meaningfully increasing revenue and profits.

At Volition, we are seeing a wide variety of internet platforms that provide out-of-the-box enterprise infrastructure and immediate scaled distribution, enabling entrepreneurs to easily create profitable businesses or side hustles. At Volition we believe there is an opportunity to be the financial partner to provide these entrepreneurs with a liquidity opportunity. We have seen these liquidity events provide financial freedom to digital entrepreneurs and allow them to pay off loans, start new businesses, or even retire. This ongoing internet consolidation thesis led our team to evaluate the opportunity of aggregating mobile applications.

In 2020, Google Play and the iOS App Store revenue totaled over $110B across nearly 5M apps and more than 140M of annual downloads. These mobile apps are highly fragmented, mostly managed by 1-2 operators, running the gamut of full time jobs to side hustles. A core theme of internet platforms, including mobile app stores, is there tends to be a lack of liquidity options for these business operators, creating an opportunity for an acquirer with the right technology to operate and scale these mobile assets into businesses.

Volition’s sourcing team searched the globe to find an entrepreneur that shared this investment thesis of aggregating mobile applications. On the first call with Rounds’ co-founder and CEO, Gal Avidor, Volition’s Principal, Jim Ferry remarked, “it was like someone was pitching our investment thesis back to us.” The team had significantly grown a handful of acquired apps that had been optimized through their machine learning technology, enabling fast payback periods. This alignment with a stellar management team and early proof points gave Volition the conviction that Rounds was ready to scale with a capital partner.

We are excited to partner with Rounds to help them achieve their goals as the largest mobile asset operator through organic growth and acquisitions.

Click here if you are a mobile app publisher that would like to connect with someone from the Rounds team.