Airbnb said to delay IPO filing to distance it from US election

[NEW YORK] Airbnb's long-awaited filing for an initial public offering (IPO) has slipped to next week, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

The home-share giant's public filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission could come as soon as Monday, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the information wasn't public.

The company, which had earlier intended to file on Thursday, decided on a delay to keep it from being overshadowed by the fallout from the US election, one of the people said. While Joe Biden is recognised as the president-elect and is moving ahead with plans for a transition, President Donald Trump continues to dispute the election's outcome and has refused to concede.

Airbnb could still adjust its plans again, the people said. The timing isn't an indication of market responses or regulatory hurdles.

A representative for San Francisco-based Airbnb declined to comment.

Airbnb is planning to raise as much as US$3 billion in a Nasdaq debut, Bloomberg News has reported. That would make it one of the largest IPOs on a New York exchange this year.

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Companies, including special purpose acquisition vehicles, have raised US$140 billion through first-time share sales in the US this year, making 2020 a record for fundraising, data compiled by Bloomberg shows.

This year as the coronavirus pandemic shut down global travel, Airbnb saw its bookings plummet and revenue tumble. The company cut a quarter of its staff in May with reservations down 70 per cent from a year earlier.

Airbnb bounced back faster than expected over the summer. In June, bookings were down only 30 per cent compared with the same month in 2019. The surge in demand was driven by travellers seeking nearby vacation rentals to escape shuttered cities and take advantage of remote work policies.

BLOOMBERG