Israeli web content recommendation platform Taboola is considering a large initial public offering (IPO) on Wall Street, sources inform "Globes," to take advantage of the boom in tech shares in the US and continue its expansion after the failure of its merger with Israeli rival Outbrain. The offering of the company led by CEO Adam Singolda, could be the next major Israeli IPO on Wall Street at a company valuation of $3 billion.
Taboola, according to the sources, is already in initial contact with US investment banks about a Nasdaq IPO. Taboola declined to comment on the report.
Taboola was founded in 2006 by Singolda and has raised $182 million to date, according to IVC, although its last financing round was in 2015 at a company valuation of $1 billion. Investors include Catalyst Fund, Fidelity, Pitango and Marker.
In October 2019, Taboola reported that it was merging with its major Israeli rival Outbrain, whose shareholders were due to receive $250 million cash and 30% of the shares in the merged company. Behind the breakdown of the merger deal was Taboola's attempts to obtain better terms, although there are various accounts of what led it to make such demands. According to a source familiar with the details, Taboola's performance during the coronavirus-induced economic crisis has been better than that of Outbrain, and Taboola therefore sought to reduce the cash element in the deal to $100 million.
Published by Globes, Israel business news - en.globes.co.il - on December 20, 2020
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