OnlyFans in talks to sell business for $8 billion

The word “quarantine” may bring dark memories to some, but for OnlyFans and its millions of subscribers and creators, it became a life-changer.   

Many industries hit an all-time high during the Covid pandemic, including alcohol, e-commerce, at-home fitness, and, of course, health care.

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However, once life returned to normal, many of these industries became subject to the consumer slowdown, reaching all-time lows. Despite all efforts, some still can’t get business back on track. 

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As with any situation, there are outliers, and the quarantine periods caused by the pandemic might have been the push that OnlyFans needed to reach its full potential and become one of the most lucrative businesses to this day. 

OnlyFans rises to fame and becomes a billion-dollar company

OnlyFans is a UK-based subscription social media platform where creators can create and monetize content. The platform is popularly known for distributing sexually explicit content and makes money by taking 20% of what creators make.

Although Tim Stokely founded the platform in 2016, Ukrainian-American Leonid Radvincky saw great growth potential and bought a majority stake in OnlyFans’ parent company, Fenix International, in 2018. 

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Radvincky was right about his decision because the company rose to fame only a few months later during the Covid pandemic. After all, people needed something to do while stuck at home all day, and consuming content seemed like the only form of entertainment that could help make the time a bit less boring.   

In 2020, OnlyFans’ revenue rose to $375 million; by the end of 2023, it was worth over $6.6 billion. Since then, it has grown immensely and is now reportedly worth around $8 billion.

OnlyFans owner in talks to sell the lucrative business 

OnlyFans owner and sole shareholder Radvinsky had reportedly been trying to sell the platform for a while, yet couldn’t find a suitable buyer due to the complexity and controversial nature of the business, as The New York Post reported.

However, that didn’t last long because Radvinsky is said to currently be in talks to sell his massive company for around $8 billion to an investor group led by LA-based investment firm Forest Road Co., as reported by Reuters, which says it obtained the information from a source familiar with the matter. 

Forest Road, as stated on the company’s website, is known for investing in business sectors including media and entertainment, renewable energy, digital assets, life science, and consumer goods, in cases when traditional financing systems have failed.

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The talks have been ongoing since March or earlier, and a deal could be finalized within the next few weeks. However, Fenix is still keeping other interested investors under consideration.

Nonetheless, neither OnlyFans’ owner nor the investor group has publicly confirmed the alleged agreement. 

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