Ticket reseller StubHub raised about $800 million with its initial public offering (IPO), setting stage for its long-awaited stock market debut. The IPO was priced at $23.50, and it sold 34.04 million shares, giving the company a $8.6 billion valuation. This is slightly lower than the $9 billion originally aimed for.
StubHub was founded in 2000 by Eric Baker and Jeff Fluhr as one of the first major online marketplaces dedicated to buying and selling event tickets. The company grew by leveraging technology to offer real-time ticket availability, secure transactions, and customer protections, setting a new standard in the secondary ticket market. In 2007, the company was acquired by eBay, which helped expand its global reach and infrastructure.
Over the years, the company grew to become the largest ticket resale platform worldwide. In 2020, eBay sold StubHub to Viagogo (now part of the Swiss company Global Group) as part of a strategic refocus
READ: Klarna IPO raises $1.37 billion as Buy Now, Pay Later demand grows (
While its primary focus is on secondary ticketing, StubHub also offers tickets directly from artists and venues. Earlier this month, StubHub announced a multi-year agreement with Major League Baseball to offer tickets to its games.
“Investors will be very keen on its growth plans and the expansion opportunity into original ticket sales is certainly an appealing part of the story,” said Matt Kennedy, senior strategist at Renaissance Capital, a provider of IPO-focused research and ETFs. “For consumers, switching costs are low, but there are still network effects for having the largest ticket marketplaces, with some very strong brand capital.”
StubHub’s IPO comes after repeated failed attempts to go public. The most recent stall came in April following the announcement of President Trump’s “liberation day” tariffs.
READ: Ticket reseller StubHub aims for $9 billion in IPO valuation (
Recently, the IPO market has bounced back after a dry spell caused by high inflation and rising interest rates. Fintech company Klarna said last week that it has raised $1.37 billion in its U.S. initial public offering, setting the stage for a market debut that could set the trend for high-growth fintech listings. This comes after the company delayed its IPO in April. Other companies that have recently had impressive IPOs include Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss’ Gemini, stablecoin issuer Circle, Peter Thiel-backed cryptocurrency exchange Bullish, and design software company Figma.
StubHub said in its updated prospectus that first-quarter revenue increased 10% from a year earlier to $397.6 million. Operating income came in at $26.8 million for the period, compared with an operating loss of $883 million one year ago. The company will begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol “STUB” on Wednesday.