Swedish streaming giant Spotify are finally listed on the NYSE, after many months of rumours. The exchange opened with a price of $132 and the stock reached a high of $169.90 before closing at $149. This values the company at around $26 Billion and while they have a long journey ahead with tough competitors such as Apple Music, the doubters are left in the dust for now.
Deciding to avoid a traditional IPO in favour of a direct public offering, Spotify gave existing shareholders the option to sell directly to market traders, instead of offering new stock. Founder Daniel Ek explained the decision in a recent blog post:
“Spotify is not raising capital, and our shareholders and employees have been free to buy and sell our stock for years. So while tomorrow puts us on a bigger stage, it doesn’t change who we are, what we are about, or how we operate. This is why we are doing things a little differently, 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. Sometimes we succeed, sometimes we stumble. The constant is that we believe we are still early in our journey and we have room to learn and grow.”
Ek’s personal net worth rose to over $2 Billion following the opening day of trading, he owns a 9% stake in Spotify.