Critical.
Authoritative.
Strategic.
Subscribe to CIO Magazine »

Facebook 2012 IPO could top $US100 billion

The social networking site may be forced to go public by Securities and Exchange Commission regulations

Social network Facebook is likely to go public in the first quarter of next year with a valuation of over $US100 billion ($A94.59 billion), the CNBC business news network reported on Monday.

Facebook chief executive, Mark Zuckerberg, has repeatedly said he is in no hurry to take the social network public but CNBC said the company may be forced to do so by Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regulations.

CNBC said Facebook's decision to conduct an initial public offering could be triggered by an SEC requirement that companies with more than 500 private investors must disclose financial information.

The network, citing "people familiar with the matter," said Facebook will likely report it has crossed that threshold at the end of this year.

The so-called "500 rule" requires private companies to release quarterly financial reports like public companies.

Facebook is also facing pressure from employees who are not allowed to sell their shares on private exchanges such as SharesPost, where Facebook has been given a valuation of as high as $85 billion, CNBC said.

It said Facebook's valuation was expected to be above $100 billion when an IPO takes place next year.

Join the CIO Australia group on LinkedIn. The group is open to CIOs, IT Directors, COOs, CTOs and senior IT managers.

More about: CNBC, etwork, Facebook, NBC, SEC, Securities and Exchange Commission

Comments

1

Jill Kennedy

Tue 14/06/2011 - 10:47

Hey, but according to these internal Facebook user base growth projections, that insane $100 billion valuation may be too low! 7.3 billion users by 2015 (the planet earth will only have 7.2 billion people).

Post new comment

The content of this field is kept private and will not be shown publicly.
Users posting comments agree to the CIO comments policy.
Login or register to link comments to your user profile, or you may also post a comment without being logged in.
Related Coverage
Related Whitepapers
Latest Stories
Community Comments
Tags: business, Facebook, IPOs, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), social networking
Latest Blog Posts
Whitepapers
  • Stopping Fake Antivirus: How to Keep Scareware off Your Network
    This paper provides insight into where fake antivirus comes from and how it is distributed, what happens when a system is infected with fake antivirus, and how to stop this persistent threat from infecting your network and your users.
    Learn more »
  • A whitepaper on Cloud Security
    Articles include: The cloud security checklist; Creating a governance framework for Cloud Security; Hackers, like vendors are embracing the cloud. Are you?; Want government cloud? Rethink security! and more. Read this whitepaper.
    Learn more »
  • Oracle Business Process Analysis Suite
    Careful analysis and continuous optimization of business processes delivers real competitive advantage. Conversely, a random approach to process design negatively impacts a company’s bottom line. This insight is one reason successful companies adopt business process management (BPM) as a way of aligning their business processes with business and customer requirements. Success with BPM eliminates the gap between business strategy and implementation. Business users are empowered to participate in all stages of the business process lifecycle. Closed-loop integration between modeling, execution, and monitoring enables continuous and holistic business process improvement.
    Learn more »
All whitepapers
rhs_login_lockGet exclusive access to Invitation only events CIO, reports & analysis.
Recent comments