TECH
UBERLYFT SLACK*PINTERESTPAGERDUTY
$3.0 BILLION
$1.6 B.
$281 M.$193 M.
$79 M.
LARGEST LOSSES AMONG
2019ÕS IPO COMPANIES
(OVER THE TWO FISCAL YEARS
BEFORE THEIR FILINGS)
SNAP
$3.9 B.
2016 2017 2018
TWILIO
COUPA
BLUE APRON
CLOUDERA
DOCUSIGN
DROPBOX
NUTANIX
GREENSKY
PROFITABLE COMPANY
(BASED ON CUMULATIVE INCOME IN ALL YEARS SINCE IPO)
UNPROFITABLE
COMPANY
0
200
400
$600 $2.2
BILLION
$118.5 M.
$352.3 M. $312.9 M.
$1.4 BILLION $6.7 BILLION $5.9 BILLION
2019
RAISED AS OF MAY 10:
$13.0 BILLION
PAGERDUTY
LYFT
$2.3 B.
ZOOM VIDEO
SUPER
LEAGUE
GAMING
$864 M.
$250 M.
$25 M.
$1.4 B.
UBER
$8.1 B.
*SLACK HAS FILED
FOR A DIRECT LISTING,
NOT AN IPO.
43
FORTUNE.COM // JUNE.1 .19
some underwriting process but also forgo-
ing any immediate proceeds.
In all, six U.S.-based, venture-capital-
backed tech companies had made a 2019
debut by FortuneÕs press time, reaping
$13 billion. Investors gave some, like Uber,
a cool reception out of the gate. In terms
of absolute numbers, it’s a relatively slow
year for tech IPOs. What makes this year
so remarkable, though, is the money that
individual companies are raising. On
average, they’ve collected $2.2 billion each
through their IPOs, more than in any of
the prior seven years.
In fact, Kathleen Smith, cofounder of
IPO-tracker Renaissance Capital, expects
a record-setting 2019. U.S.-listed IPOs
across all industries, not just tech, may
raise more than $100 billion this year,
eclipsing the $97 billion collected in 2000
during the dotcom bubble.
Like then, there’s a red flag to consider
when it comes to the current crop of tech
companies going public: They’re hemor-
rhaging cash. Combined, they lost $5 bil-
lion in the two years leading up to their
IPOs. And that’s not even including office
landlord WeWork, delivery service Post-
mates, and home hotelier Airbnb, which
are also eyeing the public market.
We’re only at the half-year mark, after
all. More unicorns are on the way.