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Key people at Freelancer.
Founded in 2009 by CEO Matt Barrie through the acquisition of GetAFreelancer, Freelancer is a crowdsourcing marketplace based in Sydney connecting Western small businesses with professionals in developing regions. The platform serves as the largest global freelance network, linking over twenty million users across diverse sectors like technology, design, and writing while facilitating secure project transactions. Generating revenue primarily through marketplace fees, the company also operates the Escrow payment system, a secure financial platform that has processed over two billion dollars in transactions. Following its 2013 listing on the Australian Securities Exchange, the enterprise achieved an initial market capitalization exceeding one billion dollars before reaching a subsequent valuation over six hundred million. Supported by founding investor Simon Clausen and Catcha Group, the organization has won ten Webby Awards and maintains historical ties to Intel through past acquisitions.
Freelancer.com is the world's largest freelancing and crowdsourcing marketplace, connecting over 86 million employers and freelancers across 247 countries for jobs in software development, writing, design, engineering, marketing, and more.[2][1] It operates as a bidding platform where clients post projects, freelancers bid competitively, and payments are facilitated post-completion with platform fees of 10% or a minimum of $5 for fixed-price jobs.[1] Founded in 2009 and publicly listed on the ASX (FLN), the company has scaled massively with over 49 million users and 19 million job postings as of recent stats, demonstrating strong growth momentum through acquisitions and global expansion.[1][2]
The platform serves businesses seeking remote talent and freelancers offering skills globally, solving the challenge of efficient hiring for short-term or specialized work without traditional employment overheads.[3][4] Its growth is fueled by remote work trends, boasting features like contests, video chat, and local job postings, positioning it as a comprehensive virtual marketplace.[3]
Freelancer.com was founded in 2009 by Matt Barrie, who serves as CEO, after he personally experienced the speed of online freelancer hiring while struggling to find help for a data entry project paying $2,000—no one locally wanted it, but bids flooded in from GetAFreelancer.com within days.[1][3] Barrie, a Stanford graduate and former venture capitalist at Innovation Capital, had previously founded Sensory Networks, acquired by Intel in 2013, giving him tech entrepreneurship expertise.[5] Headquartered in Sydney, Australia, the company quickly expanded with offices in Vancouver, Buenos Aires, California, Jakarta, Manila, and London.[1][4]
Pivotal early moves included acquiring established platforms like GetAFreelancer.com, EUFreelance.com (2004, Sweden), Scriptlance.com (2001, Canada), vWorker, and others, consolidating the fragmented freelance space.[2][4] Listed on the ASX in 2013 at a $600 million valuation with 40% annual growth, these steps built rapid traction, evolving from a simple job board to a global powerhouse.[5][6]
Freelancer.com rides the gig economy and remote work explosion, accelerated by digital transformation and post-pandemic shifts toward flexible labor, enabling "eBay for services" at global scale.[3] Timing was ideal post-2009, tapping early online outsourcing while acquiring competitors to dominate before platforms like Upwork fully matured.[2][4] Market forces favoring it include rising demand for on-demand skills in AI, software, and creative fields amid talent shortages, plus low barriers for emerging markets' freelancers.[1][3]
It influences the ecosystem by democratizing access—businesses hire affordably from anywhere, freelancers in developing regions earn globally—and standardizing remote work via profiles, reviews, and secure payments, shaping norms for crowdsourcing marketplaces.[2]
Freelancer.com's public status and acquisition strategy position it for continued dominance, potentially expanding into AI-matching, enterprise tools, or verticals like Freightlancer from its 2018 Channel 40 buy.[6] Trends like AI automation of bids, Web3 payments, and hybrid work will amplify its scale, though competition from Fiverr or Toptal demands innovation in trust and speed. Its influence may evolve toward ecosystem orchestration, powering the next wave of borderless talent economies, reinforcing its role as the go-to hub for global freelance work.
Key people at Freelancer.
