LinkedIn, the popular social networking site built around professional relationships, plans to go public this year and has hired banks to advise it on the process, people with direct knowledge of the matter said on Wednesday.
LinkedIn chose Morgan Stanley, Bank of America Merrill Lynch and JPMorgan Chase as three advisers, after a round of pitches held in early November, said one of these people, who requested anonymity because the process was confidential.
LinkedIn and its advisers are working on the documentation necessary for an initial public offering (IPO) and will most likely complete the prospectus by the end of the quarter, this person said.
The company is the latest in a slew of Internet companies seeking to reach the public markets to accelerate their growth. However, plans by companies like LinkedIn to go public have in some ways been overshadowed by speculation over what the -biggest social-networking player of all, Facebook, will do.
LinkedIn had settled months ago on pursuing a public offering this year, with the timing largely independent of Facebook’s own reported preference to go public next year, the person with direct knowledge of the matter said.
A LinkedIn spokesman said in a statement: “An IPO is one of many tactics that we could consider. Our main focus has been on creating long-term value for our members and our shareholders.”
As a private company, LinkedIn’s financial information is not public. However, shares of the company already trade on secondary markets like SharesPost, where LinkedIn has an implied valuation of about US$2.2 billion — a conservative figure, this person said.
The size of the offering is likely to be a relatively small percentage of LinkedIn’s overall valuation, largely because company insiders are not expected to sell large holdings.
News of LinkedIn’s plans was first reported by Reuters.
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