UPDATE 1-Clubhouse closes new round of funding that would value app at $4 billion -source

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By Elizabeth Culliford

April 18 (Reuters) - Audio-chat app Clubhouse closed a new Series C round of financing, the company said during its weekly town hall on Sunday, without disclosing the amount raised.

A source familiar with the matter confirmed to Reuters that the new financing would value the company at $4 billion.

The social media app said the new round of financing was led by Andrew Chen of venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz with major investors like DST Global, Tiger Global and Elad Gil.

Clubhouse and Andreessen Horowitz did not respond to requests for how much the funding round raised.

The San Francisco-based company, whose app allows people to discuss varied topics in audio chatrooms, has seen its popularity surge after appearances by billionaires Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg.

The success of the invite-only, year-old platform, which recently reported 10 million weekly active users, has demonstrated the potential of audio chat services, particularly as people stay inside homes due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Bloomberg earlier this month said https://bloom.bg/3ec1eo2 Twitter Inc was in discussions to buy audio app at a $4 billion valuation.

Tech website The Information first reported details on the funding on Friday. (Reporting by Elizabeth Culliford in New York and Radhika Anilkumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)