Reddit Inc, known for its message boards that became the go-to destination for day traders during this year’s meme stock frenzy, on Wednesday said it had confidentially filed for an initial public offering (IPO) with US securities regulators.
Founded in 2005 by Steve Huffman and Alexis Ohanian, Reddit was valued at US$10 billion in a private fundraising earlier this year.
Reuters in September reported that the company was hoping for a more than US$15 billion valuation by the time an IPO takes place.
Photo: Reuters
The filing comes as US IPOs hit record highs, fueled by ample liquidity due to accommodative monetary policies. Robinhood Markets Inc, Coupang Inc and Coinbase Global Inc are some of the companies that this year launched IPOs in the US.
As of October last year, Reddit had about 52 million daily active users and more 100,000 communities, or “sub-reddits.”
The company posted explosive growth as a result of retail investors flocking to its message boards at the start of the year for tips on trading shares of GameStop Corp and other so-called meme stocks.
San Francisco-based Reddit reported US$100 million in advertising revenue in the second quarter, an almost threefold jump from the same period last year.
In March, the company hired Drew Vollero — who as the first finance chief of Snap Inc guided its transition to a public company — as its first chief financial officer.
The company’s biggest investors include Fidelity Investments Inc, Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital and Tencent Holdings Ltd (騰訊).
Reddit did not disclose the number of shares that would be offered or the price range of the IPO in the draft registration statement with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
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