Snap Inc goes public, seeks to raise $3 bn

Snap Inc, parent company of the fast-growing social networking app Snapchat, has made its long-awaited initial public offering (IPO) filing public, seeking to raise up to $3 billion.

The five-year-old Snap Inc which filed documents for one of the biggest IPO by a technology company, is valued between $20-$25 billion, CNET reported.

In the documents filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, Snap Inc said it took in $404 million in revenue last year but lost $515 million.

Founded by a college dropout Evan Spiegel, Snap Inc's IPO will be one of the highest-profile stock debuts in recent years along with Chinese e-commerce company Alibaba (that raised nearly $22 billion in 2014) and social media giant Facebook (which raised $16 billion in 2012).

In the quarter that ended on December 31, 2016, Snapchat had 158 million daily active users on average -- up 48 per cent from the same quarter ended December 31, 2015.

Snapchat aims to derive most of its revenue from advertising where it will compete against Google, Facebook and Twitter.

Snap Inc recently rolled out major changes in its app that will make it easier to navigate the app with a universal search bar that's always accessible at the top of the app.

Available for some people on Android, the new changes will roll out to all iOS and Android users soon.

Snapchat is also introducing "Our Story" -- a new global live story that any user can contribute to at any time.

The "Quick Chat" suggestions will let you hop to a particular friend's message thread or story a lot faster, the report added.

You will also be able to see in your profile your "best friends" that you Snap with often.

--IANS

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