JPMorgan Chase acquires The Infatuation, a restaurant discovery service that bought Zagat from Google in 2018
Wall Street Journal
Context & Ripple Effects
JPMorgan Chase is buying The Infatuation three years after the platform bought Zagat out of Google — Google having paid $151M for the guide in 2011 before offloading it in 2018 as it retreated from standalone local-review properties. In between, The Infatuation raised $30M from Jeffrey Katzenberg's WndrCo to scale the combined brand.
For JPMorgan, this continues an acquisition streak aimed at consumer-facing digital assets rather than core banking: it bought payments startup WePay in 2017 (the WePay deal) and UK digital wealth manager Nutmeg just this past June (roughly $1B for Nutmeg). Dining discovery adds a high-frequency, lifestyle-adjacent engagement layer to that portfolio.
First-order effects
The Infatuation and Zagat move from venture-backed independent operator to subsidiary of the largest US bank by assets, with WndrCo's 2018 bet exiting through acquisition rather than IPO.
JPMorgan gains owned dining content and review inventory at a moment its recent purchases show it assembling non-banking touchpoints — payments (WePay), investing (Nutmeg), now restaurants.
Second-order effects
Owning both a payments rail and a dining-recommendation engine puts JPMorgan in position to tie card spend to curated recommendations — the kind of merchant-funded pairing rivals like other card issuers would need a content answer for.
Google's 2018 divestiture looks prescient in hindsight: the review-guide asset has now changed hands twice, underscoring that general-purpose tech and finance buyers value these brands differently than their original owner did.
Third-order effects
If the pattern holds, banks keep buying engagement and content businesses to own the customer relationship outside of transactions, turning financial institutions into consumer-lifestyle platforms — a structural blurring of banking and media that regulators and incumbent ad-supported reviewers will eventually have to price in.
The trend: Consumer banks are acquiring content and lifestyle brands — payments, wealth, now dining discovery — to build engagement moats beyond traditional financial products.
Some (amazing) personal and @infatuation news. Looking forward to our next chapter on this incredible 12+ year journey with JPMorgan Chase. Let's goooooo. https://www.wsj.com/...
@kh
Kristen Hawley on x
Credit cards + restaurant recommendations and access, it's a whole thing. https://twitter.com/...
@chrismessina
@chrismessina on x
It's like brands keep getting indigestion when they try to consume @infatuation https://www.wsj.com/...
@bmorrissey
Brian Morrissey on x
Bet we will see more of these nontraditional acquirers of media assets. Some will build, some will buy. https://twitter.com/...
@hreins
Hillary Reinsberg on x
Super excited to share this news, very excited for what's next, and extremely proud of our @infatuation team “JPMorgan to Buy Restaurant-Discovery Service the Infatuation” via @WSJ https://www.wsj.com/...
@drorpoleg
Dror Poleg on x
Crypto: we're coming to eat your lunch JP Morgan: Do you have a reservation? https://www.wsj.com/...
@hshaban
Hamza Shaban on x
JPMorgan to Buy Restaurant-Discovery Service the Infatuation “Banks don't usually buy media companies. But JPMorgan has made a push to attract big spenders who like to travel and dine out, particularly through credit-card rewards.” https://www.wsj.com/...
@katie_roof
Katie Roof on x
Thanks for the restaurant recs, JPM https://twitter.com/...
@quinnypig
Corey Quinn on x
Looking forward to banking with “JP Morgan Chase The Infatuation,” which unfortunately sounds like the title of a Paw Patrol episode. https://twitter.com/...
@rafat
@rafat on x
Very interesting: JPM buying @infatuation for its Chase high spenders. Smart, at least theoretically, also ability to blow out Eatscon with captive card audience. What next for Chase? A high end tour operator? https://www.wsj.com/...
@fromedome
Dan Frommer on x
Smart, especially as Amex+Resy start shipping stuff. But now they have to actually allow it to thrive... easy to ruin a cool/fun/useful media company under bad corporate ownership. Good one to watch. https://twitter.com/...
@tanyadua
Tanya Dua on x
As a huge foodie, this is fascinating to me. Amex bought Resy in 2019. @jpmorgan just bought @infatuation. Who will Citi buy? https://www.wsj.com/...
@silviakillings
Silvia Killingsworth on x
“Banks don't usually buy media companies.” https://www.wsj.com/...
@tomgara
Tom Gara on x
Finally, the merger of the two most powerful forces in millennial NYC dining: the Chase Sapphire Reserve credit card, and The Infatuation https://www.wsj.com/...
@houseofstang
Chris Stang on x
It's a big news day over here at @infatuation. Very proud of our team and very excited for the future. https://www.wsj.com/...
@kenwattana
Ken Wattana on x
Folding it into Sapphire card benefits? Becoming a millenial bank? Augmenting Jamie Dimon's lunch budget? https://twitter.com/...