Snapchat in funding talks with investors, including Alibaba

Ephemeral messaging app Snapchat is in funding talks with investors including Alibaba, according to Bloomberg . The valuation of the funding is tipped at around $10 billion, however, both Alibaba and Snapchat have been cagey about the situation.

The Snapchat app garnered a huge fan following since its inception, with a majority of users in the 17 to 25 age group. The app was one of the top 25 most downloaded apps in the Apple App Store in the United States for the past year, according to App Annie, a mobile analytics company. This success put it in an envious position, with  Facebook and Google vying for a stake in it. Facebook even went ahead trying its luck with a similar app Slingshot , with little success. More recently, it launched Bolt under Instagram’s wing - also inspired by Snapchat.

While Snapchat has been successful in terms of downloads, its popularity is doing little to bring it money. Earlier this month, there were reports of the disappearing- photo sharing service introducing in-app purchases . While this could be one of its goals in the longer run, Snapchat’s decision to seek help from investors seems like a more immediate solution.

Alibaba, on the other hand, is about to go public and has stakes in a number of start-ups, as it seeks to make inroads into mobile apps. The New York Times reported that if a deal was reached, it would represent a big bet on the future of Snapchat as self-destructing photos and messages have swept across Silicon Valley, catching the attention of tech stalwarts like Facebook, Google and Yahoo.

However, reports of the potential tie-up might just be a rumour, as some insiders from Alibaba have denied the reports. As per Business Insider , a source from Alibaba called the funding deal between Alibaba and Snapchat “highly unlikely” to happen. Another source flat-out denied the Alibaba rumor to Business Insider calling it “false”.