I'm convinced Airbnb will never actually go public. They said they won't this year, despite having been "2 years from an IPO" for the last three years and fired the CTO who was supposed to take them public, so they aren't in any rush to IPO. But why woul they ever? Companies go public maybe for two reasons: 1) They need to raise capital, but Airbnb is profitable and has billions on hand. 2) Early investors with board seats want to cash out, but Airbnb has already cashed a bunch of them out and can keep doing private rounds to roll over investors. Additionally, if they did IPO, 1) Brian Cheeky might have to answer to investors, and probably wouldn't get free reign for "moonshots" 2) They would have to file financials which could only give regulators/local government more ammunition against home sharing. 3) They would need to give out stock to former employees with RSUs, which they just don't have to if they never go public. It seems like an obvious choice. Eventually they'll have to change comp to attract new employees, but till then they have the perfect set up; promise new employees RSUs that will never be worth. something.
But paper money could be a lifetime of freeeee toilet paper
Bloomberg is a private company, and it’s a big profitable company. So I’m not surprised if Airbnb never goes public given it’s doing well financial-wise
Yeah but I’m pretty sure Bloomberg never intended on going public either. Might be wrong about that though.
In conclusion, you should probably join a company that’s hemorrhaging money ;) Growth >> profitability.
Lmao good point, company burns so much money they have no choice but to ipo
Anyone want to buy some shares? 😉
where and how
I was kidding but I appreciate the interest! 📈
The tourism industry is in extreme need of innovation. Planning and booking a trip is still a hellish waste of time, and trips themselves are never as satisfying as you hope: too expensive, disappointing, and inconvenient on every level. Most of the units I've stayed in were clearly designed as AirBnb investments, with just the level of decor and quality to keep you from leaving and going to a hotel. The notion that by virtue of staying in an AirBnb "you're a local" reeks of asinine techie entitlement and insidiousness that I hope sees backlash, particularly in other countries. Same goes for AirBnb Experiences, which purport to allow guests to buy their way into local cool kids' parties while they're Ubering from the airport. Moreover, I've never stayed at a problem-or hassle-free Airbnb that I felt was a good value and have since switched back to hotels. There are so many problems in this space, but I haven't seen any innovation from Airbnb in the past 3 years. Their pleas for "authenticity" are hollow, for now. Hoping they have something up their sleeves. I'd much rather participate in a free, social event connecting locals and tourists, along the lines of a hostel rooftop bar for 30-somethings in a foreign city, than head straight to the highest-rated bar near my hotel (which is just as inauthentic), but there's a long way to go.
they were barely profitable, and most of that profit was due to their ex-CFO using their cash as a hedge fund (a profitable one). They’ll need to make a ton more profit to provide exits to current investors and employees if they don’t go public
How do you know?
http://www.businessinsider.com/airbnb-profit-revenue-2018-2 $93m profit on $2.6b in revenue. I've read elsewhere ~$60m came from the "hedge fund", so it was still a small part of total revenue, but it would have been dumb not to get a return on the $5b in cash they have from investors and float.
Based on my last 2 experiences with AirBnB, I'm today back in a hotel booked via Expedia. Selection has diminished, and now there are all kinds of tricks, like pictures of properties that are years old. That wouldn't even be a problem if properties were well maintained. As other good customers of the past, I'm going elsewhere, which will only leave in the platform those seeking for bargains, diminishing the interest of those thinking of making properties available, what will reduce available inventory. The downward spiral has started...
Regulations gonna be a headache for Airbnb. I think the Same shitshow for Lyft and Uber.
Lyft and Uber have better user experience and cheaper price than taxi, but Airbnb cannot guarantee it will defeat traditional hotel business in these aspects, maybe it is a good additional choice.
Recently had a bad experience where the host cancelled because the previous guy fucked up their place. It was an overbooked event and I had a hard time finding an alternative
Wouldn't the investors be fucked if they never IPO?
What are airbnb's moonshots?
Lol
Experiences like making pizzas with Giorgio in North Beach or scuba diving with Martina in Waikiki.