Snapchat has raised $175 million in new funding from Fidelity Investments, bringing total funds raised to $1.4 billion and valuing the ephemeral messaging app at the same $16 billion as it boasted a year ago.
Though the shares were purchased last month, according to The Wall Street Journal, they are technically part of a March 2015 round led by Alibaba. That’s when Snapchat originally authorized the sale of shares. The company was ultimately unable to sell the shares later on at a higher price despite a year of growth.
While Snapchat’s flat valuation could signal some concern about its viability, the company is not alone, as weary investors are increasingly writing down the valuations of once-buzzy tech startups. Fidelity reportedly marked down the value of its stake in Snapchat by 25% last November.
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Snapchat has made several moves to amp up its ad business in recent weeks, including a partnership with Viacom that would allow the television giant to sell ads on Snapchat’s behalf as part of larger TV packages. It also tapped Nielsen to track ads across its platform in a bid to satisfy marketers who have long clamored for more concrete data about ad reach.
Additionally, Snapchat has experimented with a web player so that Snaps might be viewed on desktops, and the company also recently launched on-demand geofilters that can be purchased by businesses or individuals as promotional tools.