Airbnb plans IPO as rentals rebound
Airbnb is planning an IPO.
The short-term home rentals company said Wednesday (August 19) it had confidentially filed for a listing with U.S. regulators.
That sets the stage for one of the year’s biggest stock market debuts.
The move underscores a rebound in parts of the travel industry.
In July the San Francisco-based firm said customers had booked more than 1 million nights in a single day for the first time since March 3.
That’s partly as U.S. travellers shy away from flights and hotels, and opt to drive to private rentals.
Airbnb says it hasn’t decided how many shares to sell, or what valuation it will seek.
Nor did it give a timeline for the sale.
But a source told Reuters it wants to get the listing done before 2021.
Earlier in the year, a collapse in demand for home rentals prompted Airbnb to suspend marketing and cut about 25 percent of its workforce.
In April it raised 2 billion dollars from investors - a deal that valued it at about 18 billion dollars.
That was well below the 26 billion value that Airbnb cited as its own valuation back in March.
With U.S. capital markets now staging a stunning recovery, the firm may feel it’s a good time to tap investors for a whole lot more.
