In 2019, an influx of high-profile unicorns made their long-anticipated public market debuts. Although the number of unicorns to go public was up this year versus 2018, the total number of IPOs was down 17.4%, and the total proceeds raised were down 1.3% from last year. That said, market performance has trended upward year-to-date.
As we move into 2020, we expect to see several unicorns hit the public market, and we expect more to shirk the traditional IPO for a direct listing route.
Here are some companies who have expressed plans to IPO in 2020, as well as a few that are speculated to be amping up for a public offering.
* = MV Portfolio Company
IPO Update: 2019
Airbnb*
Industry: Consumer Services
Last Round: $1B (9/5/2018)
Estimated Valuation: $35B (3/2019)
Airbnb offers a peer-to-peer market for booking travel accommodations around the world, as well as curated experiences. Since we last discussed Airbnb’s IPO prospects, the company has announced plans to go public in 2020, with many speculating that the company is preparing for a direct listing.
Asana
Industry: Enterprise Software
Last Round: $50M (11/29/2018)
Estimated Valuation: $900M (11/2018)
Asana is an enterprise platform that helps companies manage their workload and project timelines. Earlier this month, it was reported that the company is also considering a direct listing in 2020. Founded by a Facebook co-founder, the task management platform has reportedly crossed $100 million in annual recurring revenue, growing more than 90% in 2018.
Casper
Industry: Consumer Goods
Last Round: $100M (3/27/2019)
Estimated Valuation: $1.1B (3/2019)
Casper, a Direct-to-consumer mattress company, is reportedly working with Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs to prepare for a 2020 IPO. Although the company is relatively young, (founded in 2014), it has already raised more than $340 million in total funding to date.
DoorDash
Industry: Consumer Services
Last Round: $100M (11/13/2019)
Estimated Valuation: $12.6B (11/2019)
DoorDash, an on-demand food delivery service, is reportedly pursuing a 2020 direct listing. Between UberEats, Postmates, and GrubHub the food delivery landscape is crowded, but recent data shows that the company saw 114% year-over-year growth as of October.
DraftKings
Industry: Sports Betting
Last Round: Undisclosed Series F (10/14/2018)
Estimated Valuation: $1B-$10B (9/19/2018)
Founded in 2012, Draft Kings offers online fantasy sports contests and sports betting. Recently, the company announced plans to go public in a deal that will merge DraftKings with Diamond Eagle Acquisition (NASDAQ:DEAC), a special purpose acquisition company, and SBTech, a technology and trading services provider that specializes in gaming companies. Once finalized, it’s expected that this merger will bring DraftKings valuation up to an estimated $3.3 billion.
GitLab
Industry: Information Technology
Last Round: $268M (9/12/2019)
Estimated Valuation: $2.75B (9/2019)
GitLab is an open-source code collaboration platform where developers can store, create, review, and deploy code. Ahead of their anticipated late 2020 IPO, the company’s most recent round of funding doubled its valuation from the previous round. Whether the company hits its target IPO date remains to be seen.
S-1 101: How to Read an S-1 Filing
Instacart*
Industry: Consumer Services
Last Round: $271M
Estimated Valuation: $7.6
Founded in 2012, Instacart is an on-demand grocery delivery service boasting partnerships with Kroger, ALDI, Sam’s Club, and more. While no IPO date has been set, CNN has quoted Instacart CEO, Apoorva Mehta, as saying that an IPO is “on the horizon. Since inception, the company has expanded to 15,000 stores across 4,000 cities in the U.S.
Palantir*
Industry: Information Technology
Last Round: ~$900M (7/1/2019)
Estimated Valuation: $20.53B (7/2019)
Palantir, the highly secretive data-mining company, has had investors speculating about a possible IPO for the last few years. While some speculate the public debut could happen in 2020, others estimate that it will be a few years yet. Either way, when Palantir does take the plunge, it will be a big moment for investors who have been chomping at the bit.
Postmates*
Industry: Consumer Services
Last Round: $225M (9/19/2019)
Estimated Valuation: $2.4B (9/2019)
Another food delivery service, Postmates, which had plans to IPO in 2019, has delayed its public debut, citing unstable market conditions. When the company goes public in 2020 likely depends on how the market shakes out. If and when the company does list, it is expected to IPO.
Robinhood*
Industry: FinTech
Last Round: $50M (10/29/2019)
Estimated Valuation: $7.6B (10/2019)
Robinhood, the zero-fee stock trading app that is highly popular with millennials, has taken steps to ready itself for an IPO, including hiring a CFO. Starting out as just a stock trading app, the company has since expanded into other services, including crypto trading.
Snowflake
Industry: SaaS
Last Round: $450M (10/11/2018)
Estimated Valuation: $3.9B (10/2018)
Snowflake provides data warehousing designed for the cloud. From August 2018 to August 2019, the company’s revenues were up 237%, employee count doubled, and new customers quadrupled. While there isn’t a hard indication that the company will go public in 2020, CEO Frank Slootman, has said that the company is in “scaling mode” and that they are “preparing our systems, compliance, and processes for going public.”
Topgolf*
Industry: Media & Entertainment
Last Round: Undisclosed Series F (11/2017
Estimated Valuation: $2.1B (11/2017)
Topgolf is a high tech driving range that offers patrons interactive golf-based games as well as food and drink. The company operates 56 locations around the world and plans to open 14 new locations in the U.S., Mexico, Canada, and the United Arab Emirates, which could be due to upcoming IPO plans. According to an October 2019 report by Reuters, the company is in talks with investment banks to hire underwriters for a speculated 2020 IPO.
Building Wealth Through Pre-IPO Investing
Pre-IPO Investing
If you’re an approved accredited investor looking to invest in secondary late-stage opportunities, head over to the offerings page to see what we currently have available and make sure that you’re subscribed to our offering emails. To qualify as an accredited investor, you must either have an income of $200,000 or more or a net worth of at least $1 million (excluding your primary residence). If you believe you meet these criteria, please schedule a time to talk to one of our representatives to get activated as an accredited investor today.
*****
The information presented here is for general informational purposes only and is not intended to be, nor should it be construed or used as, comprehensive offering documentation for any security, investment, tax or legal advice, a recommendation, or an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, an interest, directly or indirectly, in any company. Investing in both early-stage and later-stage companies carries a high degree of risk. A loss of an investor’s entire investment is possible, and no profit may be realized. Investors should be aware that these types of investments are illiquid and should anticipate holding until an exit occurs.
