Vice Media in talks to acquire Refinery29

According to The Wall Street Journal, talks have been underway between Vice Media and Refinery29 with a view to a possible acquisition of the latter.

While an offer can not yet be confirmed, it's thought discussions are still ongoing. 

Women's lifestyle site Refinery29, was founded 13 years ago and is currently available in the US, Canada, the UK, France and Germany. In 2018 it was forced to cut ten per cent of its workforce after annual revenue fell short of expectations by five per cent. However, it reportedly reaches over 425 million readers globally.

Vice Media, which has a largely male audience, is apparently looking to diversify and expand into new revenue streams in order to meet chief executive Nancy Dubuc's goal of returning the company to profitability. It also fell on hard times when one of its biggest financial backers (Disney) made a US$350m write-off on its investment.

If Vice does go through with the purchase, the deal would unite two of the largest venture-backed media companies in the U.S.