A month after shelving its plans to go public, videogame company Roblox Corp. said it raised $520 million and that it is planning a direct listing.
A direct listing allows companies to float their shares directly on the stock market, rather than going through the underwriting process typically associated with taking a company public. Data-mining firm Palantir Technologies Inc., streaming service Spotify Technology SA and workplace messaging platform Slack Technologies Inc. went public via direct listings.
A Series H funding round led by Altimeter Capital and Dragoneer Investment Group placed the company’s shares at $45 apiece, bringing its valuation to a total of $29.5 billion. The company was valued at $4 billion following a $150 million raise in February 2020.
The Investment Group of Santa Barbara and Warner Music Group also participated in the funding round, as did several of its existing investors.
The company said the proceeds will go toward Roblox’s growth initiatives and platform that will enable shared experiences among its billions of users.
