Spotify is today making its debut on the New York Stock Exchange in a ‘historic’ move which could value the music streaming giant at $25 billion.
The Swedish company will be trading existing shares held by its private investors but will not issue any new shares, a decision which has been described by market analysts and experts as “unusual”.
Reports suggest that the flotation could value the business, which has not posted a profit since the service was launched in 2008, at between $20bn and $25bn.
In a blog post published yesterday, co-founder and CEO Daniel Ek said the move puts the company “on a bigger stage”.
However, he insisted that the initial public offering “doesn’t change who we are, what we are about, or how we operate”.
“Lots of people have asked me how I feel about tomorrow’s listing,” he wrote. “Of course, I am proud of what we’ve built over the last decade. But what’s even more important to me is that tomorrow does not become the most important day for Spotify.
“It’s the day after, and the following day that matters – and all those days to come. Because that’s when we will continue the hard and important work of our mission: to unlock the potential of human creativity by giving a million creative artists the opportunity to live off their art and billions of fans the opportunity to enjoy and be inspired by it.
“Normally, companies ring bells. Normally, companies spend their day doing interviews on the trading floor touting why their stock is a good investment. Normally, companies don’t pursue a direct listing.
“While I appreciate that this path makes sense for most, Spotify has never been a normal kind of company. As I mentioned during our Investor Day, our focus isn’t on the initial splash.
“Instead, we will be working on trying to build, plan, and imagine for the long term.”
In a recent regulatory filing, Spotify said that it had 159 million monthly users including 71 million paying subscribers.
The company warned last week that its sales growth was likely to slow this year, but that it still expected to post a narrower annual loss.