Snapchat’s Parent Company Reportedly Files Confidentially For Its IPO

Last month, The Wall Street Journal reported

that Snap Inc., the recently-launched parent company of the messaging app Snapchat, was planning its initial public offering (IPO) for March 2017. Based on that timeline, the tech company appears to be right on schedule. According to Reuters, it has filed confidentially with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for its IPO.

Because Snap Inc. makes less than $1 billion in revenue per year, U.S. law allows it to use the private filing to test the waters among investors without having to actually publicize the details of its IPO. Based on the response it receives, it can move forward with its previously-planned March 2016 offering.

The previous WSJ report said Snap Inc. is seeking a $25 billion valuation for its IPO, and the Reuters report backs up that figure by surmising that the company’s offering could be somewhere in the $20-25 billion range. When it raised a $200 million funding round back in May 2016 — which brought its total amount of venture capital up to $2.4 billion — it had already reached a valuation of at least $20 billion.

The only question left for Snap Inc. is how it will bring in revenue to please its investors. Ads are currently the company’s primary source of income, though it recently rolled out a $130 wearable product known as Spectacles.

Snap Inc. did not comment on the recent Reuters report.