Verve Group was formed to unite advertising technologies in one combined offering — a privacy-first omnichannel ad platform for advertisers and publishers. We want to build an ecosystem for the open internet that fuels growth for businesses globally. Our parent company is MGI – Media and Games Invest SE, which is listed on Nasdaq First North Premier Growth Market in Stockholm and in the Scale segment of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange.
A Look Inside
Verve Group
Our Mission
We empower the growth of the open internet by bringing marketers and publishers closer together across the omnichannel customer journey. As pioneers in digital advertising, we understand the importance of building strong and trustworthy connections, both with our clients and within our company. We’re focused on prioritizing transparency in advertising and creating a safe and privacy-first ecosystem for consumers. We are creating an ecosystem that works for everyone: marketers, advertisers, agencies, publishers, and customers alike.
Meet Our Leaders
Sameer Sondhi
Co-CEO, Verve Group
Sameer has 20+ years of experience in the advertising industry, working with operators and media companies. Sameer held executive positions at InMobi, Opera Media, GroundTruth, Infospace, and LiveWire.
Ionut Ciobotaru
Co-CEO, Verve Group
Ionut has 15+ years of experience in the ad tech industry and founded the mobile monetization platform PubNative, building advertising technologies for publishers to maximize their revenues. Early in his career, Ionut started the web development company Weebo and also held positions at Applift and EA.
The History of Verve Group
Verve Group as a common branding was established in 2020 following the acquisitions of PubNative GmbH (now Verve Group Europe GmbH) and its mobile SSP and programmatic ad exchange; Platform161 B.V. and its global programmatic DSP; and the acquisition of the assets to a location-based mobile marketing platform by Verve Group, Inc. In 2021, Verve Group welcomed VGI CTV, Inc. which acquired Nexstar Digital’s video ad platform, and Verve Group Europe GmbH purchased the data platform from Beemray Oy. In addition, Smaato Group, a leading mobile ad tech company, recently joined Verve Group, along with Match2One AB, a self-service platform for customer acquisition.
The founding of Verve Group, Inc.’s mobile marketing platform by its former owner in 2005 disrupted the advertising industry with its powerful location-driven technology. Platform161 followed in 2009, bringing a unique customizable marketing platform to the industry for advertisers, agencies, and publishers. In 2014, PubNative launched a monetization platform for mobile publishers with a focus on native advertising, before expanding its offering, scope, and reach. Nexstar Digital’s video advertising platform – formerly known as LKQD – was founded in 2014 with a focus on video monetization for publishers, and now brings a unique CTV marketplace to our combined offering. In addition, Beemray brings a leading real-time data SaaS platform to Verve Group’s stack which enables strong contextual targeting and complements our privacy-focused vision. On top of this, the acquisition of Smaato adds a powerful mobile-first SSP to Verve Group’s full-stack suite of products and secures its spot as a top ten global ad exchange. The most recent acquisition of Match2One brings new capabilities to Verve Group’s performance marketing solutions, introducing a powerful self-service platform to its product offering.
The unification of these ad tech companies brings together an innovative solution: a privacy-first omnichannel ad platform for advertisers and publishers.
We develop products to equip buyers and publishers with the tools needed to deliver valuable advertising to consumers. We’re your alternative to the walled gardens, championing a more open and transparent ecosystem to help businesses reach global audiences at scale.