Snapchat snaps up a reported $175 million in funding

If you are — or know — a millennial or a Gen Z-er, odds are you know someone on Snapchat. The mobile photo and video sharing platform has exploded in popularity over the past two years.

That explosion of popularity is not lost of investors, with the company reportedly raised an additional $175 million in a recent round of Series F fundraising by Fidelity Investments. In total, Snapchat has raised more than $1.2 billion in funding.

The latest investment was first reported by Reuters and the Wall Street Journal.

Snapchat, which is most popular with users under the age of 18 years, is popular for more than just its addictive "snaps" (For those over 18 years, snaps are photos that are posted for 24 hours after they are taken.)

The mobile platform has also grown recently as a video destination. In late 2015, the platform saw a reported six billion video views a day (approaching Facebook's self-reported eight billion). Now, as of the end of February 2016, Snapchat has emerged with eight billion video views per day, according to Business Insider.

Speaking at the Morgan Stanley Tech, Media and Telecom Conference last month, Snapchat CEO Evan Spiegel announced the new numbers to an audience of investors and said the company is now five times bigger than it was this time last year.

Creators on Snapchat have been recognized at industry events such as the Streamy Awards and the Shorty Awards. Recently, the Tribeca Film Festival added a Snapchat short film competition (judged by hip-hop artist and prolific Snapchatter DJ Kahled, pictured), adding to the legitimacy of the medium.

But Snapchat's worth has apparently not soared at the same rate that its popularity has.

According to the WSJ, Fidelity bought stock in the company at $30.72 per share, with the company's valuation at $16 billion (the same as it was this time in 2015). Despite that, Snapchat is still the sixth most highly valued venture-backed company in the world, according to the report.

Snapchat's major form of revenue is through its growing advertising business on the Snapchat Discover platform. Last month Snapchat and Viacom expanded on their existing partnership, bringing a new Comedy Central International channel to the platform as well as an MTV U.S. channel.

Source: Snapchat snaps up a reported $175 million in funding