LadBible founder rakes in over £40m as shares rise
The chief executive and co-founder of LadBible has raked in more than £40m through his investment vehicle which is a major shareholder in the online publisher.
Alexander “Solly” Solomou set up the Manchester-based company in 2012 alongside Arian Kalantari.
The group floated on the London Stock Exchange’s AIM at the end of 2021 while its other brands include the likes of Unilad and Sportbible.
Solomou and his Solo Investments Holdings are the largest single shareholder in LadBible owner LBG Media with a combined stake of 87m shares (41.6 per cent).
New accounts filed with Companies House have now revealed that the firm’s shareholder funds surged from £101.4m to £142.6m in 2024.
Solo Investments Holdings also includes two property subsidiaries.
In 2024, LBG Media’s share price jumped from 80p to 130p but has since slipped back to just under 100p.
When the LadBible owner floated on AIM in December 2021, it had a valuation of around £360m – a total which has now dropped to just over £200m.
Other major backers of LBG Media include Makkma Investments (19.8 per cent), which is controlled by Boohoo co-founder Mahmud Kamani.
Profit surges at LadBible owner
In June, the owner of LadBible revealed its revenue had increased 13 per cent to £43.9m in the first half of its financial year while its pre-tax profit surged 165 per cent to £8.6m.
At the time, Solomou said: “LBG Media has positive momentum, with double digit growth in the first half of 2025.
“This reflects our diversified and agile model, which offers blue-chip brands access to the hard-to-reach 16-34 year old demographic.
“In the US, we were pleased to secure several clients exceeding $1m and build a healthy pipeline of near-term opportunities.
“Our confidence of progress in the second half of the year is underpinned by our audience, the power of LBG Media’s brands, our attractiveness to brands and celebrities, and the relevance of our content.
“Whilst mindful of the macroeconomic environment, we remain confident of delivering 10 per cent revenue growth at constant currency.”