Glassdoor/Upwork
Upwork office employees smile to the camera.
- Upwork, the largest freelancers network, is set to go public Wednesday.
- It priced shares at $15 apiece, raising $187 million through its initial public offering.
- The company said its business has grown rapidly, but it still hasn't made a profit.
The freelancers network Upwork is set to go public Wednesday on the Nasdaq. It priced shares at $15 apiece, raising $187 million through its initial public offering.
"We operate the largest online global marketplace that enables businesses to find and work with highly-skilled freelancers as measured by gross services volume," Upwork said in its public filing.
"In the twelve months ended June 30, 2018, our platform enabled $1.56 billion of gross services volume, across 2.0 million projects between approximately 375,000 freelancers and 475,000 clients in over 180 countries."
Upwork said its business has grown rapidly, but it still hasn't made a profit.
For the year ended in December 2017, the company said its revenue totaled $202.6 million, up from $164.4 million the year before. The company also said it generated a net loss of $4.1 million in 2017 due to "significant investments" in selling, general, and administrative expenses, but was able to narrow its loss from $16.2 million in 2016.
Upwork was formed in 2014 when Elance and oDesk, two of the earliest and largest online talent marketplaces, combined as a new company. The combination was rebranded as Upwork in 2015, according to the filing.
The underwriters for Upwork's IPO include Citigroup, Jefferies and RBC.
Upwork will trade under the ticker "UPWK."
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