INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Two very different 'unicorns' aim to go public in 2020Airbnb may be another overvalued “unicorn,” but it’s no WeWork.The Information
this morning reported new Airbnb financials — indicating a massive increase in operating losses — that immediately call Airbnb’s
Precisely, Airbnb lost $306 million on operations on $839 million in revenue, namely as a result of marketing spend, in the first quarter of
In total, Airbnb invested $367 million in sales and marketing, representing a 58% increase year-over-year, in Q1
The company is gearing up for a major liquidity event next year and is making a concerted effort to rake in new customers, as any
soon-to-be-public business would.Given WeWork’s sudden demise, coupled with Uber and Lyft’s lukewarm performances on the stock markets,
many have wondered how Wall Street will respond to Airbnb’s eventual IPO prospectus
Will money managers have an appetite for another over-valued Silicon Valley darling? Or will the market compete like mad for shares in the
massive home-sharing marketplace?But Airbnb, again, is no WeWork, and I wager Wall Street will have a much friendlier approach to its
For one, Airbnb’s co-founder and chief executive officer Brian Chesky isn’t dropping $60 million on private jets — I don’t think
CEO behaviors aside, Airbnb has more capital in the bank than it has raised in its entire 11-year history, which is a whole lot of money
This is all according to a source who is familiar with Airbnb’s financials and shared this detail with TechCrunch following The
Information’s Thursday morning report
As for Airbnb, the company told TechCrunch, “we can’t comment on the figures, but 2019 is a big investment year in support of our hosts
and guests.”Airbnb’s CEO Brian Chesky speaks at TechCrunch Disrupt SF 2014Airbnb has attracted more than $3.5 billion in equity funding
at a $31 billion valuation and has even more locked away in its bank account
Additionally, Airbnb has an untouched $1 billion credit line, the source said
Presumably, the referenced credit line is the 2016 $1 billion debt financing from JPMorgan, CitiGroup, Morgan Stanley and others.Moreover,
Airbnb has been “cumulatively” free cash flow positive for some time, meaning that it’s seen more money coming in than going out
during recent quarters, according to our source
It has been reported that Airbnb surpassed $1 billion in revenue in the second quarter of 2019 and in the third quarter of 2018, but we’re
guessing the business did not top $1 billion in Q4 of 2018 or Q1 of 2019 because it if had, that information would probably have been
“leaked.”Finally, Airbnb has been profitable on an EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) basis for two
consecutive years, the company announced in January
Gross bookings, meanwhile, are growing, as is Airbnb’s business offering and its experiences product.Why does any of this matter, you ask?
