Three finance sources said on Monday that Delimobil, a car-sharing firm, would be the first Russian company to make a long-awaited initial public offering (IPO) in 2024. The listing could raise up to 4 billion roubles ($43.5 million).

(Photo : by Spencer Platt/Getty Images))

According to two of the people, the business intended to offer exclusively fresh shares and aimed to raise between 3 and 4 billion roubles. In February of last year, Delimobil declared that it was reorganizing and may go public through an IPO.

According to calculations by Reuters, Russian companies have raised a total of around 29 billion roubles ($323 million) through IPOs and direct listings in 2023. This amount is significantly less than the billion-dollar capital raising that Russian companies accomplished in the early years of President Vladimir Putin's administration.

The biggest bankers in Russia have replaced the Western institutions that once served as bookbuilders and underwriters.

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Other IPOs to Watch Out For in 2024

Investors surely hope that's the case with the IPO market, as 2024 approaches. Even if there are still a few weeks left in the year, the data is not promising for the first three quarters. Ernst & Young reports that until September 30, there were 968 initial public offerings (IPOs) globally, raising $101.2 billion in cash. This amounts to a 32% fall in proceeds and a 5% decline in volume compared to 2022.

The U.S. figures, however, are noticeably better. Renaissance Capital reports that until December 6, 106 initial public offerings (IPOs) were priced, representing a 49.3% increase over the same period in 2022. US IPOs are still far lower than the 397 priced in the same time in 2021, though.

Shein

Early in December, rumors circulated that Shein, a Chinese digital fashion firm, had submitted private documents to the US government. The Securities and Exchange Commission is expected to become public in the first half of 2024. According to Bloomberg, the company is seeking for a valuation of up to $90 billion, having previously been valued at around $66 billion during a funding round in May.

Shein is changing the rules when it comes to going public, depending more on its social media influence to generate demand for its shares than on strong financials or wealthy investors. With about 31 million Instagram followers, the brand is well-known among younger shoppers drawn to the online retailer's exceptional design selections and inexpensive pricing.

Panera Brands

Panera Bread's parent company, fast casual restaurant platform Panera Brands, has discreetly filed papers for its own initial public offering (IPO) following months of mixed signals and the layoff of 17% of the business's personnel.

In May of last year, after appointing a new CEO, former Einstein Bros. Now that Panera, which JAB Holding Co.-the former owner of Au Bon Pain and the current owner of Krispy Kreme Inc. (DNUT)-has acquired for $7.5 billion and held as a private company since 2017-has added new chief financial officer and IPO specialist Paul Carbone, it appears that the company will use the new C-suite launch as a "preparation for its eventual IPO." Bagels CEO José Alberto Dueñas stated the company would use this as a "preparation for its eventual IPO."

Reddit

On the Reddit IPO front, things appear to be getting hotter. As 2023 comes to an end, the business is apparently talking with possible investors, and rumors of a $15 billion value are circulating on Wall Street.

Reddit had planned an IPO for the spring of 2023, but obstacles included a "downvote" request from investing behemoth Fidelity, persistently high interest rates, and the poor success of previous IPOs. Reddit was valued at $10 billion in 2021, but as of May 31, 2023, financial services behemoth Fidelity Investments has reduced its worth to $5.5 billion.

Reddit hasn't announced a timetable for its initial public offering (IPO) despite having submitted the necessary documents to the SEC in December 2021. Although company representatives had anticipated delaying their launch until the second half of 2023, there had been no word for some time about a Reddit initial public offering.

With a few more things going well, Reddit now appears to have a greater chance of making it through its IPO landing.

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