Who owns Vinted? Ownership structure explained (2026)

Vinted has grown from a Lithuanian startup into a platform with over 100 million registered members across 26 markets. It processed €10.8 billion in gross merchandise value (GMV) in 2025 and has become a genuine force in the circular economy. Unlike many peer-to-peer marketplaces, Vinted charges zero seller fees, which raises an obvious question: who funds this, and who stands to profit?

This article breaks down Vinted's full ownership structure — from its founders and venture capital backers to the key executives who control its direction. You'll also find a timeline of major funding events and a look at what ownership means for Vinted's future.

Vinted operates a peer-to-peer marketplace for second-hand clothing, shoes, accessories, and home goods. Buyers and sellers transact directly on the platform, with Vinted providing shipping integration, buyer protection, and payment processing. The company's core value proposition is simple: sellers list items for free, and Vinted monetizes through buyer-side fees and optional seller services like promoted listings.

The company was founded in 2008 in Vilnius, Lithuania, by Milda Mitkutė and Justas Janauskas. Mitkutė's original idea came from wanting to sell clothes she no longer wore — a problem that turned out to be universal.

Today, Vinted is headquartered in Vilnius, with significant offices in Berlin, Prague, Amsterdam, and Utrecht. The platform operates in 26 markets, including France, Germany, the UK, the Netherlands, Spain, Italy, Belgium, and Poland. In January 2026, it launched in the United States, its first market outside Europe.

Key stats paint a picture of its scale:

Vinted is the dominant second-hand fashion platform in continental Europe, competing with eBay, Depop (owned by Etsy), Vestiaire Collective, and Wallapop in various markets.

Vinted is not publicly traded. You cannot buy shares on any stock exchange. The company's equity is held by its founders, employees (via stock options), and a group of venture capital and growth equity investors who have backed the company across multiple funding rounds.

Because Vinted is private, detailed share breakdowns are not publicly disclosed in the way a listed company's ownership would be. However, funding round disclosures, regulatory filings, and credible reporting provide a reasonably clear picture of who holds meaningful stakes.

Vinted has raised approximately €530 million in total funding across several rounds. The most significant investors include:

The Series E round in 2021 was the defining event in Vinted's capital history. It raised €250 million at a reported valuation of €3.5 billion, led by EQT Growth with participation from Lightspeed Venture Partners, Accel, and others. This round cemented Vinted's status as one of Europe's most valuable private tech companies.

Since then, Vinted's valuation has climbed through secondary share sales rather than new primary rounds. In October 2024, TPG led a €340 million secondary that valued the company at €5 billion. In April 2026, an €880 million secondary led by EQT, Schroders Capital, and Teachers' Venture Growth valued Vinted at €8 billion, roughly a 60% step-up. Those deals gave employees and early investors liquidity without Vinted raising new capital.

Exact founder stakes are not publicly disclosed. However, based on the number of funding rounds and the typical dilution patterns for European startups at this stage, co-founders Milda Mitkutė and Justas Janauskas likely retain single-digit percentage stakes. Mitkutė stepped away from an operational role years ago but remains connected to the company as a co-founder. Janauskas similarly transitioned away from daily management.

Thomas Plantenga, who joined as CEO in 2016, almost certainly holds a meaningful equity position through a combination of direct shares and stock options, though the exact figure is undisclosed.

Vinted operates an employee stock option plan (ESOP), which is standard for European tech companies at this stage. This means a portion of the company's equity — likely in the range of 10–15% — is reserved for current and former employees. The specifics of the option pool are not public.

As of mid-2026, Vinted has not filed for an IPO or announced concrete plans for a public listing. In April 2026, CEO Thomas Plantenga said going public was not a short-term priority. Still, several factors keep it in the conversation as a candidate:

No S-1 equivalent has been filed with any exchange, and Vinted leadership has not committed to a timeline. Plantenga has instead pointed to Vinted's 2026 launch in the United States, its first market outside Europe, as the current priority.

Understanding who owns Vinted is only half the picture. Operational control — who actually makes decisions — matters just as much.

Thomas Plantenga has served as Vinted's CEO since 2016. A Dutch national, Plantenga previously held leadership roles at OLX Group (a Prosus/Naspers-owned classifieds business), where he ran operations in several European and Asian markets. He was brought in specifically to professionalize Vinted's operations and drive international expansion.

Under Plantenga's leadership, Vinted expanded from a handful of markets into 20+ countries, overhauled its business model (eliminating seller fees in 2016), and scaled revenue from under €30 million to nearly €600 million. He is widely credited with transforming Vinted from a struggling Lithuanian startup into a pan-European category leader.

Plantenga holds both operational authority and a significant equity stake, making him the single most influential figure in the company's direction.

Milda Mitkutė co-founded Vinted in 2008 and served in various roles during its early years. She stepped back from active management well before the company's major growth phase. Justas Janauskas, the technical co-founder, similarly transitioned away from daily operations.

Both retain equity stakes and symbolic importance as founders, but neither exerts meaningful control over current strategy or operations.

Vinted's board includes representatives from its largest investors. While the full board composition is not always publicly updated, it typically includes partners from Lightspeed Venture Partners, EQT Growth, and Accel, alongside Plantenga and potentially independent directors. Board seats give these investors formal governance rights — including approval over major transactions, fundraising, and executive appointments — even though their individual equity stakes may be smaller than the combined founder and employee pool.

Vinted's ownership has evolved significantly over nearly two decades, shaped by funding rounds, leadership changes, and strategic pivots.

The 2016 decision to eliminate seller fees was a pivotal moment. It was a bold bet — one that initially hurt revenue but dramatically accelerated user growth. By shifting the cost to buyers through a "buyer protection fee" (typically 3–8% of the item price plus a small fixed fee), Vinted removed the biggest friction point for sellers and created a flywheel: more sellers meant more inventory, which attracted more buyers, which attracted more sellers.

That structural decision, made under Plantenga's early tenure, is arguably the single most important strategic choice in the company's history. It was funded by venture capital and only became self-sustaining when Vinted hit profitability in 2023.

In 2024, France's competition authority (Autorité de la concurrence) opened a preliminary investigation into Vinted's market practices in France, its largest market. The inquiry focused on whether Vinted's dominance in second-hand fashion gave it the ability to impose unfair terms on users or competitors. As of mid-2026, no formal charges or penalties have been announced, but the investigation remains ongoing.

Operating across the EU means Vinted is subject to GDPR. In 2022, Lithuania's data protection authority (VDAI) investigated Vinted over complaints related to how the platform handled identity verification data, specifically the requirement for users to upload photos of government-issued IDs. The investigation resulted in a €2.4 million fine — one of the largest GDPR penalties issued in Lithuania.

Vinted contested the fine, arguing its verification processes were necessary for fraud prevention. The case highlighted the tension between platform security and privacy compliance that all peer-to-peer marketplaces face.

Several European countries have introduced rules requiring platforms like Vinted to report seller income to tax authorities (under the EU's DAC7 directive, effective from 2023). While this is a regulatory obligation rather than a controversy, it has generated user confusion and concern. Vinted has complied with reporting requirements, but the directive has changed how casual sellers perceive the platform.

In 2026, social-media claims alleged child trafficking on Vinted. German police, independent fact-checker Mimikama, and Vinted's own investigation found no credible evidence to support the claims. Vinted said it removes prohibited listings and cooperates with law enforcement. The episode showed how quickly viral allegations can pressure a consumer platform of Vinted's scale.

For Vinted's 100+ million users, ownership isn't an abstract question. It directly shapes the platform experience.

Vinted's VC backers expect growth and, eventually, a return on their investment — likely through an IPO or acquisition. That pressure influences decisions about international expansion, fee structures, and new revenue streams like advertising and promoted listings. If Vinted goes public, its incentive structure shifts again: quarterly earnings expectations can push companies toward short-term revenue optimization over user experience.

Ownership also matters for data. Vinted holds personal data — including payment details, shipping addresses, and identity documents — for tens of millions of Europeans. Who controls the company determines how that data is governed, stored, and potentially monetized.

Finally, Vinted's ownership structure shapes competition. A well-funded, VC-backed Vinted can afford to subsidize growth through zero seller fees in ways that smaller competitors cannot match. That dynamic has implications for the broader second-hand marketplace ecosystem across Europe.

Thomas Plantenga has been Vinted's CEO since 2016. He joined from OLX Group and has led the company through its major growth phase, international expansion, and path to profitability. He is based in the Netherlands and holds a significant equity stake in the company.

No. Vinted is a privately held company as of 2026. It is not listed on any stock exchange. It is backed by venture capital and growth equity investors, and a secondary share sale in April 2026 valued it at €8 billion. CEO Thomas Plantenga has said an IPO is not a short-term priority.

Vinted was co-founded in 2008 by Milda Mitkutė and Justas Janauskas in Vilnius, Lithuania. Mitkutė came up with the idea as a way to sell clothes she no longer wore. Both founders have since stepped back from active management roles.

The largest shareholders are venture capital and growth equity firms, including EQT, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Accel, and Insight Partners. TPG joined through a 2024 secondary sale, and Teachers' Venture Growth and Schroders Capital came in through the €8 billion secondary in April 2026, when EQT also increased its stake. Exact ownership percentages are not publicly disclosed. Founders and employees also retain equity through direct holdings and stock options.

Vinted's primary revenue comes from buyer protection fees, which typically range from 3–8% of the item price plus a small fixed amount. Additional revenue streams include promoted listings (where sellers pay to boost item visibility), shipping label sales, and emerging advertising products. This buyer-side model was introduced in 2016 and has been the foundation of Vinted's growth since.

It's possible but less likely given the company's scale and valuation. At €8 billion, the pool of potential acquirers is limited to the largest tech, retail, or private equity buyers. eBay, Etsy, Zalando, or a major private equity firm could theoretically be buyers, but Vinted's investors and leadership appear to be building toward independence, whether as a public company or a long-term private one. No acquisition discussions have been publicly reported.