Nextdoor raises $686 million at an implied valuation of $4.3 billion and says it will go public via a SPAC

• Nextdoor, the social network for neighbors, plans to go public at a valuation of $4.3 billion.
• It aims to list on Nasdaq by merging with a blank-check company owned by Khosla Ventures.
• The merger will generate $686 million for Nextdoor.

Nextdoor, the social network for neighbors, is to go public via a blank-check merger at an expected valuation of $4.3 billion.

The company plans to list on the Nasdaq exchange through a reverse merger with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) operated by Khosla Ventures, and will raise $686 million in doing so, it said Tuesday.

Nextdoor, founded in 2011, allows neighbors to plan events and discuss local issues, among other things. The Nextdoor network operates in 275,000 neighborhoods, the company says.

Nextdoor said Tuesday that it hopes to use the proceeds of the deal to grow its user base and ramp up monetization of its platform for small businesses.

Investors in Nextdoor's latest fundraising include T. Rowe Price, Soroban Capital, and Baron Capital Group. Axel Springer, Insider's parent company, is also an investor in Nextdoor.

Nextdoor had been considering going public either through a direct listing or a SPAC - also known as a blank-check company - since last year, Bloomberg first reported, citing unnamed sources close to the matter.

The deal announced Tuesday is subject to approval by Khosla shareholders and is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2021.

Nextdoor raised $393 million in venture capital funding, according to data from Crunchbase.