This post may contain links from our sponsors and affiliates, and Flywheel Publishing may receive
compensation for actions taken through them.
Upwork has filed an S-1 form with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for its initial public offering (IPO). No pricing details were given in the filing, although the offering is valued up to $100 million, but this number is usually just a placeholder. The company intends to list its shares on the Nasdaq under the symbol UPWK.
The underwriters for the offering are Citigroup, Jefferies, RBC Capital Markets, Stifel and JMP Securities.
This company operates the largest online global marketplace that enables businesses to find and work with highly-skilled freelancers as measured by gross services volume (GSV). Freelancers are an increasingly sought-after, critical and expanding segment of the global workforce.
In the 12 months ended June 2018, the platform enabled $1.56 billion of GSV across 2.0 million projects between roughly 375,000 freelancers and 475,000 clients in over 180 countries.
Upwork’s platform reduces inefficiencies associated with searching for, contracting and collaborating with, and paying highly-skilled freelancers for short-term and longer-term projects. As early innovators in this space, the firm has built an expansive and unique repository of data on our platform, which, when combined with its machine learning capabilities, enables it to better connect clients with the best freelancers for their projects. As a result, clients are able to obtain specialized talent in less time and at a lower cost compared to traditional channels.
In the filing, the company described its finances as follows:
For the six months ended June 30, 2017 and 2018, our total revenue was $95.5 million and $121.9 million, respectively, representing a period-over-period growth rate of 28%. For the twelve months ended June 30, 2018, our total revenue was $228.9 million. In 2016 and 2017, our marketplace revenue was $138.5 million and $178.0 million, respectively, representing an annual growth rate of 29%.
The company intends to use the net proceeds from this offering primarily for working capital and other general corporate purposes.
Get Ready To Retire (Sponsored)
Start by taking a quick retirement quiz from SmartAsset that will match you with up to 3 financial advisors that serve your area and beyond in 5 minutes, or less.
Each advisor has been vetted by SmartAsset and is held to a fiduciary standard to act in your best interests.
Here’s how it works:
1. Answer SmartAsset advisor match quiz
2. Review your pre-screened matches at your leisure. Check out the advisors’ profiles.
3. Speak with advisors at no cost to you. Have an introductory call on the phone or introduction in person and choose whom to work with in the future
Get started right here.
Thank you for reading! Have some feedback for us?
Contact the 24/7 Wall St. editorial team.
Latest from 24/7
Our expert who first called NVIDIA in 2009 is predicting 2025 will see a historic AI breakthrough.
You can follow him investing $500,000 of his own money on our top AI stocks for free.