Upcoming IPO: Switch IPO expected to raise $469m this week

Switch Inc is expected to raise $469 million in an initial public offering (IPO) this Thursday, investment manager Renaissance Capital reports. The Switch IPO will come after Roku (NASDAQ:ROKU) saw its shares jump 67.9 percent last week in its market debut, giving the streaming device maker a valuation of $2 billion at the end of its first day of trading.

Switch unveiled plans for its upcoming IPO last month, saying that it was planning to offer 31.25 million shares, priced between $14 and $16. The company plans to float on the New York Stock Exchange, where it will be trading under the symbol SWCH.

Switch is looking to benefit from the rapid rise in data traffic and the world’s reliance on the internet to deliver services and information, which the company argues, is making the collection, storage and transfer of data one of the largest challenges created by the internet. The company also disclosed in its filing that it has been profitable for at least the past four years.

Renaissance Capital meanwhile notes that some investors may be turned off by insider dividends and its dual-class structure. Switch has warned in its prospectus that no decision had “been made with respect to the amount and timing of dividend payments, if any”.

The company, however, has said that following the completion of its upcoming IPO, its board may elect to pay cash dividends on its Class A common stock, while holders of its Class B and Class C common stock will not be entitled to participate in any dividends declared by the board of directors.

The Switch IPO is scheduled for Thursday. The US IPO calendar meanwhile also includes Singapore entertainment platform Sea which recently unveiled plans to float in New York, and will reportedly be looking to raise $1 billion.