Matthew S. Bromberg
BumbleAbout Matthew S. Bromberg
Matthew S. Bromberg, age 58, has served as an independent director of Bumble Inc. since July 2020. He is currently President and CEO of Unity Technologies and a Senior Advisor to Blackstone; he previously served as COO of Zynga, SVP Strategy & Operations (Mobile) at Electronic Arts, and held senior roles at AOL, among other operating and entrepreneurial roles. He holds a B.A. in English from Cornell University and a J.D. from Harvard Law School.
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zynga Inc. | Chief Operating Officer | Aug 2016 – Nov 2021 | Led operations through mobile transition |
| Electronic Arts Inc. (Mobile division) | SVP, Strategy & Operations | Jan 2015 – Jul 2016 | Drove mobile strategy execution |
| Major League Gaming Corp. | President & CEO | Prior to EA (dates not specified) | Grew professional eSports platform |
| I’mOK Inc. | Founder & CEO | Prior to EA (dates not specified) | Built location-based family communications |
| Davidson Media Holdings, LLC | CEO | Prior to EA (dates not specified) | Operated online gaming investment/consulting |
| AOL Inc. | Senior roles | Prior to above (dates not specified) | Held multiple senior operating positions |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unity Technologies | President & CEO | Current | Leading platform for games and interactive experiences |
| Blackstone | Senior Advisor | Current | Advisory role to sponsor controlling BMBL voting power |
| Fitbit, Inc. (now Google) | Director | Mar 2018 – Jan 2021 | Former public company directorship |
Board Governance
- Independence: The Board affirmatively determined Bromberg is independent under Nasdaq rules and for committee service.
- Committee assignments: Not currently on Audit & Risk, Compensation, or Nominating & Corporate Governance; no chair roles.
- Classified board: Bromberg is a Class II director (term expires at the 2026 meeting).
- Attendance and engagement: In 2024, the Board met 5 times; Audit & Risk 6; Compensation 4; Nominating 2. All directors attended at least 75% of meetings of the Board/committees on which they served. Non-management directors held four executive sessions; independent directors not affiliated with the Sponsor held three.
- Controlled company context: Bumble is a “controlled company,” with Principal Stockholders (Founder and Blackstone affiliates) holding ~91.4% of combined voting power, though the company is not relying on governance exemptions.
Fixed Compensation
| Component (2024) | Amount (USD) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Cash retainer | $75,000 | Standard non-chair director annual cash retainer |
| Equity (RSUs grant-date fair value) | $251,791 | Annual RSU award sized at $250,000 grant-date value by policy |
| Committee/Chair fees | $0 | Not serving on committees/chair roles in 2024 |
| Total | $326,791 | Sum of cash + RSU grant-date value |
Policy parameters (effective Jan 1, 2024):
- Cash: $75,000 annual director retainer; $300,000 Board Chair retainer; committee chair retainers $50,000; committee member retainers: Audit $20,000, Compensation $15,000, Nominating $10,000; “special committee” assignment $25,000 annual (max 12 months).
- Equity: Annual RSUs sized to $250,000 at each annual meeting; initial RSUs of $250,000 upon first appointment, vesting over 3 years.
Performance Compensation
| Performance-linked element in director pay | Status |
|---|---|
| Performance-conditioned equity or cash metrics | None disclosed; annual director RSUs are time-based (not PSU/metric-driven). |
Outstanding equity awards (as of Dec 31, 2024):
- Time-Vesting Incentive Units: 35,965; Exit-Vesting Incentive Units: 29,973; RSUs: 21,539. Time-based RSUs vest per annual meeting-to-next annual meeting cadence; Incentive Units have time- and exit-based vesting constructs per plan footnotes.
Other Directorships & Interlocks
- Senior Advisor to Blackstone (Sponsor), which holds ~64.7% of combined voting power via multiple affiliated entities; Sponsor-designated directors/observer rights exist under the stockholders agreement.
- Related party environment: Company maintains a Related Person Transaction Policy; 2024 transactions included: $5.7M marketing cost with Liftoff (Blackstone-controlled); $7.1M moderator services with TaskUs (Blackstone-related); $1.1M advertising revenues with Liftoff; a $50.0M sponsor repurchase was approved by a special committee of independent directors.
Expertise & Qualifications
- Strategic/operator in consumer technology and gaming; prior C-suite roles at Zynga and EA mobile.
- Legal training (Harvard Law) and operating depth across product, strategy, and execution; Board skills dashboard indicates breadth across senior leadership, industry knowledge, technology, finance, public/private boards, and international experience.
Equity Ownership
| Holder | Class A Shares Beneficially Owned | % of Class A | Common Units Beneficially Owned | Combined Voting Power |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Matthew S. Bromberg | 36,522 (14,983 held directly; 21,539 RSUs acquirable within 60 days) | * (<1%) | — | * (<1%) |
Company-wide guardrails:
- Hedging/pledging: Company policy prohibits hedging and pledging of company securities by directors; trades require pre-clearance and generally occur within window periods, with 10b5-1 plans permitted.
Governance Assessment
- Independence and role: Bromberg is formally independent, but his concurrent Senior Advisor role at Blackstone (the controlling Sponsor) creates a potential perceived conflict channel despite the Board’s independence determination; the company addresses related-party risks via policy, committee oversight, and use of special committees for Sponsor-related transactions.
- Committee coverage: He holds no committee seats; while not unusual for boards with concentrated committee expertise elsewhere, absence from financial/compensation oversight committees limits his direct role in key control forums.
- Attendance and engagement: Board and committees met regularly in 2024 with executive sessions (non-management and independent non-Sponsor-affiliated), and directors met at least the 75% attendance threshold, supporting baseline engagement.
- Pay and alignment: Director pay skews to equity (~77% of total 2024 compensation via RSUs), which supports alignment; no performance-conditioned director awards were disclosed. Outstanding Incentive Units add long-dated alignment, though exit-vesting constructs tie to Sponsor liquidity milestones.
- Controlled company context: Principal Stockholders hold outsized voting rights; the company states it is not relying on governance exemptions, but Sponsor board designation and observer rights reduce minority influence—a structural consideration for investors.
RED FLAGS
- Sponsor affiliation: Senior Advisor to Blackstone while serving as an “independent” director at a controlled company may raise conflict-of-interest optics, even with formal independence determinations and policies.
- Related-party exposure: Meaningful recurring spend with Blackstone portfolio companies (Liftoff, TaskUs) underscores the need for ongoing audit committee vigilance and robust special committee processes.