Don’t get your hopes up about an Airbnb IPO.
A source close to the company told Coins2Day that the home-sharing company has no plans to go public anytime soon, noting it has “operational flexibility.” This flexibility comes from its billion-dollar funding round and from the fact that it turned profitable on an EBITDA basis in the second half of 2016. Airbnb anticipates it will remain profitable in 2017 as well.
The company has expanded its revenue channels, adding capabilities such as restaurant reservations, events, and meetups. It projects annual revenues of up to $3.5 billion by 2020.
Founded in 2008 as an air mattress bed and breakfast rental platform, Airbnb has grown into a sharing economy behemoth now valued at $31 billion. It is the second most valuable startup after ridesharing app Uber, which is valued at $69 billion. Airbnb has raised more than $3 billion in venture capital since it was founded in 2008.
The company will likely use the funds to continue its aggressive global expansion. In February, Airbnb acquired high-end rental company Luxury Retreats for a reported $300 million in cash and stock. It also finalized a deal last month to buy Tilt, a group payments startup.