EquityZen Report: 2019 IPO Season May Be a Bellwether Year for the New Tech Elite
NEW YORK, Nov. 15, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- IPO activity will remain relatively subdued in 2019, and will be nowhere near the IPO mania preceding the dotcom bubble burst or even the busy IPO seasons of 2013 and 2014, according to a reportby EquityZen Inc., a New York-based FinTech firm that operates a secondary marketplace in pre-IPO stock. The report states that the key driver of the reduced number of IPOs continues to be the blitz of private capital allowing tech companies to stay private for many years, of which SoftBank's $100 billion Vision Fund is emblematic. Additional factors contributing to the lukewarm IPO environment in recent years include the high regulatory costs of becoming—and remaining—a public company, equity analyst scrutiny, and an increase in liquidity alternatives, such as the EquityZen platform.
Nevertheless, 2019 may be a bellwether IPO season for several well-funded and high-profile startups that have been lurking in the private markets for as much as a decade. Starting with a list of nearly 130 of the largest unicorns in the U.S., EquityZen's bottoms-up approach uses a combination of quantitative and qualitative factors that have historically presaged an S-1 filing to determine the report's anticipated IPO list. Among the over 15 potential IPOs that made the cut are highly-anticipated public debuts from Airbnb, Slack and Peloton, among others. Key industry verticals that could see public market showdowns among fierce rivals in 2019 include ride-hail, with Uber and Lyft facing off, and food delivery, where DoorDash and Postmates (and Uber Eats) may join Grubhub in going public.
"We do not expect 2019 to be a record-breaking year for IPOs," states Atish Davda, EquityZen Inc. CEO and Co-Founder. "However, next year's IPO season is one of the most highly-anticipated for other reasons. With massive unicorns and household names like Uber expected to go public, 2019 may add the exclamation point to what EquityZen has said from the beginning: value creation is shifting to the private markets."
For the full list of anticipated IPOs in 2019, as well as commentary on highly-anticipated public debuts from companies like Uber and Airbnb, please click here: EquityZen's 2019 IPO Outlook—A Bellwether Year for the New Tech Elite?
About EquityZen EquityZen Inc. (equityzen.com) is a rapidly-growing marketplace for making investments in late-stage private technology companies. EquityZen provides accredited investors, wealth advisors, and institutional money managers access to private markets.
With over 5,000 private placements completed in 100+ premier private companies, EquityZen is building private markets for the public. Investors in the company include behemoths from Silicon Valley and Wall Street, like Draper Associates and WorldQuant Ventures. Press kit available here.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
The matters described herein contain forward-looking statements. These statements include, but are not limited to, statements about research on late-stage, venture-backed companies. We caution that these statements are not guarantees of future performance. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties or other factors beyond EquityZen's control. We undertake no obligation to release any revisions to any forward-looking statements, and the forward-looking statements are only accurate as of the time of this writing.
Media Contact Deborah Kostroun Zito Partners 201.403.8185 press@equityzen.com
