Reddit mascots are displayed at the company's headquarters in San Francisco, California April 15, 2014. REUTERS/Robert Galbraith

(Reuters) - Social news site Reddit Inc said it raised $50 million in funding in a deal that would see investors giving back 10 percent of their shares back to the site’s user community.

The funding was led by Sam Altman, president of Y Combinator, the incubator that originally helped launch Reddit, with participation from Alfred Lin of Sequoia Capital and Marc Andreessen of Andreessen Horowitz, Reddit said in a blog post. (bit.ly/1ovvKqP)

While the details of the 10 percent giveaway are being worked out, it is intended to reward the Reddit community for the “central role the community plays in reddit’s ongoing success”.

Nine-year old, San Francisco-based Reddit plans to use the funding to expand its staff of about 60, to work better with third-party developers, and to expand its mobile app, among other things.

Other investors and entrepreneurs that took part in the funding round include Peter Thiel, Ron Conway, Paul Buchheit, Jared Leto, Jessica Livingston, Mariam Naficy, Josh Kushner, rapper Snoop Dogg and Reddit Chief Executive Yishan Wong.

Reddit and Y Combinator could not be reached for comment outside U.S. business hours.