INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS TIMES
IBT Media Inc.
History • 2005 – Present
Founding Vision (December 2005)
International Business Times was founded in December 2005 by Dr. David Jang and his team in San Francisco. The publication's earliest days were set in the Montgomery Street area, long regarded as the Wall Street of the West and the city's premier financial district. Situated near the offices of emerging tech companies that would soon define the era, IBT was born into a media landscape where business journalism was still mostly confined to print. The founding vision was clear: to build an all-digital, global business newspaper delivering comprehensive coverage of international economies and markets across multiple languages.
Two names were considered: 'International Business Times' and 'International Business Herald'. The ‘International Business Times’ trademark was filed alongside the registration of a suite of domain names—including ibtimes.com, internationalbusinesstimes.com, and ibtribune.com—on December 11, 2005. ibherald.com was added in late December 2005.
The founding ambition was openly global: the vision articulated at that first meeting included city-specific editions in London, Tokyo, Hong Kong, São Paulo, Frankfurt, and New Delhi — a genuinely international network at a time when few digital publishers had attempted this.
The early development of the website was led by the founding team, with principal designers Nancy Lee and Sylvia Lee spearheading the initial web design. Web programming began immediately as a collaborative effort, with developers joining in steady succession: James Yang and Max Shim started coding from San Francisco in December 2005, followed by Martin Jung in March 2006, Jason Kim in June 2006, and Titus Choi in April 2007.
Foundation & First Office (2006)
In early 2006, several founding team members relocated to New York City to establish the company's headquarters. Sylvia Lee and Roy Li, the first editor, flew from San Francisco in February 2006 and found the first office at 120 Wall Street in April.
Etienne Uzac was elected by the founding team to incorporate the company and serve as first CEO in February 2006, and relocated to New York in March alongside the first reporters, Gerald Helguero and Jonathan Davis, who arrived from DC and LA. Benjamin D. Kim joined the editorial team in June 2006.
The first operational version of the IBTimes website launched on February 22, 2006, hosted simultaneously at businessherald.com and ibtimes.com, with international beta versions on country-specific domains going live around the same time. The company was formally incorporated in New York on March 7, 2006 as The Business Herald Inc., and renamed The International Business Times Inc. on April 3, 2006.
Forex and Commodities sections were added in November 2007, followed by IBT Education and IBT Travel in 2008.
Global Expansion (2006–2012)
Within months of the US launch, IBT began building international editions across four continents. By 2011, the network had grown to encompass editions across Asia (Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, the Philippines, South Korea, Taiwan), Europe (France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Czech Republic), Russia, the Americas (Brazil, Canada, Mexico), the Middle East and Africa — alongside US city editions serving New York, Los Angeles, and other major markets. In 2010, IBT moved its US headquarters from 120 Wall Street to 22 Cortlandt Street. In 2012, the company was renamed IBT Media Inc.
United Kingdom
International Business Times Company Limited (IBT UK) was incorporated September 5, 2006 by William Dove — the website launched in August 2006. By 2009 the team had grown steadily including team members Miroslav Lukac, who joined as programmer, and Dev Pragad, who joined as reporter. In summer 2009, IBT UK made a significant move to 1 Canada Square, Canary Wharf — one of London's most prestigious financial addresses.
In 2011, the editorial team was substantially expanded and Julian Kossoff (ex-Daily Telegraph) joined as Managing Editor, a role he held for seven years. Jason Kim and Max Shim joined in 2013. In 2014, Newsweek EMEA began operations under IBT UK's umbrella, and IBT UK moved to 25 Canada Square in summer 2015. At its peak, IBT UK employed approximately 100 staff, operated a dedicated video studio, and produced award-nominated journalism with specialist expertise in international affairs, technology, and business.
Australia
IBT Australia Pty Ltd was incorporated August 5, 2006 in Sydney by James Kong. The edition achieved financial stability after securing a long-term advertising contract with forex brokerage GO Markets as the main sponsor for its forex section, then expanded by building out its editorial team to reach 20 million monthly visitors at its peak.
Japan
IBT Japan (株式会社財経新聞社 / The IBTimes Company) was incorporated August 11, 2006, with Satoshi Mizouchi as Representative Director. In 2008, IBT Japan launched a second publication, Zaikei Shimbun (財経新聞), which continues operating independently to this day. IBT HQ directly managed ibtimes.jp from September 2010.
Hong Kong
IBT Hong Kong (International Business Times Corporation Limited) was incorporated May 26, 2006, with Winnie Wong as founding editor operating initially from San Francisco. The Hong Kong trademark was registered May 27, 2008. The edition's first dedicated Hong Kong office was established in August 2009.
South Korea
IBT Korea began its operations in 2006 under the management of JK News. In November 2008, it launched its advertising operations, with Ryan W Lee stepping in as the Korean branch chief in early 2009. The edition produced notable G20 Summit coverage in November 2010, when South Korea hosted the summit.
China
IBT China was established in September 2006 in Beijing’s CBD. In July 2008, IBT China was included in Baidu News as a recognized quality media outlet — driving daily traffic to over 100,000 visitors and growing advertising revenue more than tenfold. In December 2008, Hong Kong's FXCM recognized IBT China's foreign exchange channel. In March 2009, IBT China's BusinessSchools channel launched, establishing partnerships with 14 of China's most prominent B-Schools. In 2012, IBT China relocated to Shanghai, hiring the Bureau Chief of Time magazine as Editor-in-Chief, and built deep cooperative relationships with Baidu, 360, and other leading Chinese internet companies. IBT China ceased operations in September 2013 following regulatory action by the Chinese government.
US Growth: Traffic Milestones
A turning point came on May 21, 2011, when IBT US's coverage of Harold Camping's globally-watched 'Rapture' prediction drove traffic from thousands to hundreds of thousands — and briefly over one million daily readers. Months later, in July 2011, IBT moved to 7 Hanover Square, growing its New York team to approximately 100 staff.
In 2011, IBT also saw major traffic from sustained coverage of the story of Osama bin Laden’s killing , which Gerald Helguero — one of IBT's first reporters — later recalled as generating great reader interest. The company's editorial model, combining fast-response news with specialist coverage of technology, finance, and international affairs, proved highly effective in the social media and search-driven era.
Newsweek: Acquisition & Transformation (2013–2016)
The Acquisition
IBT's connection to Newsweek began in 2011 when IBT Media relocated to 7 Hanover Square — where The Newsweek /Daily Beast Company had been leasing approximately 50,000 square feet of office space from Guardian Life Insurance. When Newsweek moved to the IAC building in Chelsea, IBT took over the space. With an existing relationship with IAC established, IBT began exploring the possibility of acquiring Newsweek outright.
IBT Media engaged Tom Selz, partner at Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz, to advise on the acquisition. After multiple visits to IAC and a competitive bidding process, IBT Media Inc. formally purchased the Newsweek assets from IAC on August 3, 2013. The transaction represented one of the most significant acquisitions in digital media that year, bringing one of the world's most recognized news brands — founded in 1933 — under IBT's stewardship. At the time of the deal, Etienne Uzac stated: 'We believe in the Newsweek brand and look forward to growing it, fully transformed to the digital age. We respect the brand's long history of delivering high-quality, impactful journalism and believe this aligns well with IBT Media's culture and mission.' (Politico, August 5, 2013)
Rebuilding Newsweek: Editorial and Digital Development
Following the acquisition, IBT Media moved immediately to rebuild Newsweek as a serious digital and print publication. Tunku Varadarajan was engaged to lead the search for a new Editor-in-Chief. After reviewing multiple candidates, IBT Media hired Jim Impoco — a veteran of New York Times, Thomson Reuters and print journalism — as Editor-in-Chief in September 2013. IBT Media provided a full editorial budget, and Uzac and the IBT team actively encouraged Impoco to build a digital-first operation. Impoco hired 25 editorial staff initially - from only a couple of staff at the date of acquisition, growing the team to 50 staffers across New York and London by late 2014.
On November 29, 2013, IBT Media relaunched Newsweek on its legacy domain, newsweek.com. This was a landmark moment: under the previous IAC ownership, Newsweek had published only as an e-magazine at thedailybeast.com/newsweek, releasing a small number of feature stories weekly. The relaunched newsweek.com was a full daily digital publication. Jim Impoco described the editorial approach: 'Since the homepage is no longer the front door for most readers we are treating every article like a homepage and offering an experience that allows them to see the breadth and depth of our reporting.' (Newswire, December 2015)
The results were rapid and measurable. Newsweek's unique visitor count grew from 211,000 in October 2013 to 2.2 million by July 2014, according to Comscore — an increase exceeding ten-fold in under a year. In October 2014, IBT Media and Newsweek formally announced that September 2014 had marked Newsweek's first profitable month under the new ownership. Revenue had grown 400% year-over-year, with advertising revenue up 100-fold — advertising now accounting for approximately a third of Newsweek's total revenue. The average household income of Newsweek's print readership exceeded $100,000. In total, IBT Media, under Etienne Uzac, invested close to $10 million in Newsweek's development between the 2013 acquisition and 2016. By March 2016, Newsweek.com reached 10 million unique visitors.
IBT Media also invested in investigative journalism talent commensurate with Newsweek's heritage. In May 2015, IBT Media hired Murray Waas — a Pulitzer Prize finalist, winner of Harvard's Goldsmith Prize and the Barlett & Steele Business Investigative Journalism Award, and formerly of Reuters and Vice — as senior investigative reporter focusing on business and politics. Global editor-in-chief Peter Goodman stated: 'We are thrilled to add Murray's extraordinary digging and storytelling skills to our growing team of investigative reporters.' (Adweek, May 4, 2015)
Print Edition Relaunch
Newsweek's print magazine had been discontinued by IAC at the end of 2012. IBT Media decided at the end of 2013 to restore the print edition, beginning negotiations with printing companies and distributors. The first relaunched print issue of Newsweek appeared in March 2014 — making IBT Media, a company founded as a purely digital publisher, also a print publisher. The relaunch generated significant international media coverage and marked a new chapter for one of journalism's most storied brands. Newsweek's mobile app also launched in 2014. ‘We were able to come back and reinvent the Newsweek print experience from the ground up.’, said Etienne Uzac in a BBC interview on the subject.
International Licenses, Asia & Global Expansion
All pre-existing Newsweek international licenses had been set to expire with the end of the print edition. Following the acquisition, Etienne Uzac decided to renew them, working directly with representatives of the foreign media companies that had previously licensed the Newsweek brand.
On April 2, 2015, IBT Media announced the launch of a Newsweek Asia edition, distributed across China, South Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Singapore and Malaysia — first on sale April 17, 2015. The Asia edition, published in English with content targeted to the region, completed Newsweek's three-market global footprint: Americas, Europe/Middle East/Africa (EMEA), and Asia. Uzac stated at the launch: 'Newsweek has come a long way to reach this point. Its print operations were completely dismantled when we purchased it and now the whole framework and structure are back in place. Newsweek is stronger than ever and poised for growth.' (PR Newswire, April 2, 2015). By 2015, Newsweek was also published in Japanese, Korean, Polish, Serbian, and Spanish through licensed editions.
In December 2015, IBT Media simultaneously redesigned and relaunched the websites of both Newsweek and International Business Times, bringing mobile optimization and video-forward design to the forefront of both flagship publications. The redesigned IBTimes site introduced a new logo emphasizing 'forward motion and forward thinking', a streaming story feed, dynamic markets graphics, and a new long-form article format. Both sites were fully optimized for mobile and video. Richard Pasqua, IBT Media's Chief Experience Officer, stated: 'We have been extremely thoughtful in improving and optimizing the experience for our audience and our advertisers regardless of platform.' (Newswire, December 10, 2015). At this time, IBT Media's combined audience across its properties reached over 90 million monthly readers worldwide.
Headquarters: 33 Whitehall Street
33 Whitehall Street
Following the expiration of the 7 Hanover Square lease in August 2018, Dev Pragad attempted to secure new office space in Midtown Manhattan but was unsuccessful. Consequently, the Board arranged a move to 33 Whitehall Street, a space offered by 33 Universal. This location had been established in March 2017 by Benjamin D. Kim, an executive of 33 Universal and early IBT member, who signed the lease for the site.
The acquisition of the 33 Whitehall Street office was supported by $1 million in funding from Olivet University. In exchange for this financial support, 33 Universal established an internship program providing Olivet students with hands-on media experience in New York City.
To further explore collaboration, the leadership team—including Dev Pragad (CEO), Amit Shah (CFO), Alvaro Palacios (COO), and Johnathan Davis—met with Olivet University officials at Bethel House on the school’s Dover, NY campus.
During this period of transition, Pragad changed the company’s name to Newsweek Media Group in April 2017, with board approval. While IBT Media and Newsweek initially shared the building across multiple floors, IBT expanded to occupy all three floors after Newsweek vacated the premises on May 24, 2021.
Leadership Transition (2016–2018)
In 2016, Etienne Uzac stepped down as CEO of IBT Media at the time of a Manhattan DA investigation. Dev Pragad, then leading the UK operation, was appointed by the Board to serve as CEO in New York in July 2016.
Pragad transferred most of IBT Media's assets to Newsweek without board consent, including over 100 editorial staff members, the entire executive team and IBT’s clients. He also transferred the assets of IBT UK.
From September 2018, Pragad started to manage Newsweek without Board approval. Legal disputes are under way.
Led by Johnathan Davis, IBT's operations continued independently. December 2018 saw the relaunch of the IBT newsletter, improvements to header bidding ad operations, and the launch of Central CMS.
IBT's Continued Operation & Rebuild (2019–Present)
In 2019, IBT US formally absorbed IBT UK's web operations. The IBTimes newsletter was resumed and IBT worked to regain access to its social media platforms. All IT infrastructure — servers, domains, and services — was rebuilt.
In 2020 and 2021, IBT invested in a series of new product and revenue initiatives: a contributor system with automated measurement and payment, Social Capital and CEO Profile sections, an SMB Section, a Company Data and directory project, Badge Licensing, affiliate content, an IBT Shop, push notifications, and adblock monetization.
In 2022, the G20 Editions relaunched (September 2022). In August 2022, IBT US completed a CMS migration.
IBT Media’s current board is composed of 11 members. IBT Media relocated to Midtown Manhattan at 347 W 36th Street in Feb 2026.
IBT UK Revival
In Feb 2023, Jason Kim and Max Shim — both long-standing professionals with decade-long careers in IBT and Newsweek UK, and developers of IBT's own CMS — established a new independent UK company to operate the British edition of International Business Times, continuing the editorial mission of the original 2006 incarnation.
Perpetual Trust
IBT is currently in the process of transitioning into a beneficiary-less perpetual purpose trust structure. This step reflects the organization's original ethos: that IBT was never merely personal property, but a shared editorial mission held in trust for the public good — to endure independently of any individual's decisions.