The figures for Social Media Network Facebook are North-ward bound. Not only are its number of users expanding exponentially, it’s stock too is on the rise.
A Techcrunch post says, “On Monday, GSV Capital, a publicly traded investment management company, announced that it has purchased a small number of shares (225,000) at a price of $29.28 each which would give Facebook an implied $70 billion valuation.” This places Facebook just behind Amazon and HP.
What’s more interesting is what the trade did for GSV’s stock. GSV’s stock is thinly traded, but it just became a way for public investors to get some exposure to Facebook. The Facebook shares now represent 15 percent of GSV’s portfolio.
On the GSV-Facebook deal a Zdnet report says, “However, 24/7 Wall St. Points out that it is still up in the air because there is a ’30 day Right of First Refusal Expiration’ clause. Nor, has Facebook filed for an IPO yet, and this makes the situation even more trickier.
Mark Zuckerburg, Facebook’s CEO said last month that he is not planning to take his company public just yet, however, tech followers expect such a move by the end of the year. Considering the fact that Facebook could possibly have near to 750 million members worldwide, it is probably time for the network to take the plunge.
Ascertaining the implication of this development on Zuckerburg’s personal finances, a Geek.Com post says, “As Zuckerberg is the major shareholder in Facebook his value has gone up significantly too, and now stands at around $18 billion. However, this is all on paper and not the amount he has in the bank. Still, if he were to recoup that amount by selling all his shares, Zuckerberg would slot into third among on the list of richest tech guys. Bill Gates ($56 billion) still tops the chart, Oracle’s Larry Ellison ($39.5 billion) comes in second. $18 billion also means Zuckerberg jumps past Google’s Page and Brin ($17 billion).”
Zuckerburg still has a lot of climbing-up to do to reach Bill Gates, but he seems to be the only person most capable of doing so. He is only 27 and Facebook is still a young company. The Social Network will most likely not be Zuckerburg’s only venture and given that he has age, entrepreneurial skills and monetary strength on his side, it can be expected that he will implement a few more ideas which will net him billions more.
The true value of Facebook will only be revealed when it goes public. With more investors coming on board, hundreds of millions of people logging in everyday and the recent success of the LinkedIn IPO, Facebook is bound to announce their intention to initiate a IPO soon.