In a move business heads have been anticipating for years, Facebook reportedly plans to file for its IPO (initial public offering) by April, with $10 billion in stock up for grabs at the outset, according to the Wall Street Journal. In turn, the sale would value Facebook at the long predicted magic number of $100 billion, making it the biggest tech IPO ever, far surpassing Google’s $1.9 billion sale and $23 billion evaluation.
The timing of Facebook’s purported decision is especially intriguing, given the rise of Google+ and the risky endeavor that a possible Facebook phone presents, suggesting Zuckerberg and co. may need to cash out soon in the event everything goes up in proverbial flames. Not to mention the bursting tech bubble—LinkedIn and Groupon both lowered their IPO numbers by the time they went public, and now that they’re both being traded, current stock prices have fallen even below the IPO numbers. Then again, one company never really seemed all that profitable and the other is essentially a scam, issues Facebook doesn’t have.
Regardless, it's probably best to start saving up for April.
[via Gawker and Wall Street Journal]
