Videogame company Roblox Corp. has filed to go public at a time when the pandemic has supercharged demand for online gaming.
Roblox said Thursday in its documents to underpin the planned initial public offering that the company has enjoyed massive sales growth. Revenue advanced 56% to $488.2 million in 2019 and increased further during the pandemic. Sales in the first nine months of this year rose more than 68% to $588.7 million, according to filing, and bookings in that period surged 171% from a year earlier.
The company said an average of 36.2 million people world-wide come to Roblox every day to connect with friends.
But like many highly anticipated tech public offerings, Roblox isn’t profitable. It lost $86 million last year and $203.2 million in the first nine months of this year.
San Mateo, Calif.-based Roblox isn’t a traditional game developer or publisher. It operates a free online platform that has millions of games created by its own players with tools the company provides. The company generates revenue by selling virtual currency to users called Robux for purchasing in-game perks such as virtual pets or accessories for customizing the look of their avatars.
