Reddit has taken a big step towards going public. In a press release, the company has revealed that it has confidentially submitted a draft registration statement with the US Securities and Exchange Commission regarding “the proposed initial public offering of its common stock.” The announcement offers very little detail about its planned IPO, which is expected to take place after the SEC’s approval.
The social network also said that it has yet to determine how many shares will be offered and for how much. It will likely reveal an initial valuation in the near future as it prepares for an IPO, but it’s worth noting that it raised $700 million in a funding round back in August at a valuation of over $10 billion.
According to Reuters, Reddit sought to hire investment bankers and lawyers in September as advisers for a planned IPO in New York. While the IPO’s timing will depend on market conditions, Reddit was apparently hoping that the company will be valued at over $15 billion by the time it takes place next year. In March, the company also hired hired Drew Vollero, who led Snap’s IPO back in 2017, as its first chief financial officer.
Reddit was founded in 2005 and has shot up in popularity as a news aggregator, messaging board and social media website since then. In the second quarter of this year, it generated $100 million in advertising revenue — 192 percent more than what it generated in the same period of 2020 — for the first time. Going forward, it intends to find more way to incorporate video and audio into its website, which could lead to even bigger ad earnings.
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