Airbnb books 2020 to go public
The 11-year-old company was valued at $31bn in its most recent funding round
Airbnb, the accommodation-booking platform, said on Thursday it plans to go public next year, making the announcement a day after it reported more than $1bn (R14.8bn) in second-quarter revenue.The 11-year-old company stands to be among the biggest listings in 2020, having been valued at $31bn in its most recent funding round. But a series of rocky debuts for other so-called unicorns has raised questions about the durability of investor demand for new offerings.Airbnb said on Wednesday it made "substantially more" than $1bn in revenue in the second quarter of 2019 and that Airbnb hosts - people who rent out rooms or apartments on the platform - have made more than $80bn from letting their homes since it was created.At a conference in May last year, Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky said the company would "be ready" for an IPO (initial public offering) in 2019 but that it was not definite. "We have investors who are really patient, and I want to make sure it's a benefit [to them] when we ...
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