Palantir Files to go Public

Late Monday, Palantir Technologies Inc. announced that it confidentially filed to go public. The data-analysis company said in a news release that it filed a draft registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission. However, the release failed to say whether or not Palantir would go public through an IPO or a direct listing. The number of shares and potential share price weren’t stated either.

“The public listing is expected to take place after the SEC completes its review process, subject to market and other conditions,” said Palantir in the release.

Going public could mean the end of some of Palantir’s highly secretive operations, although the company has been long due for an IPO. As a result of this, there are possibilities that the company could face scrutiny for its sensitive data mining projects with the US government. There have been several speculations about what could become of the company when its public listing is finalized. A public listing means that Palantir will have to reveal the full picture of its work, especially with government agencies for the very first time. As a result of that, the company has withheld any news as regards listing its shares.

 As of its last valuation in 2015, the data start-up had a valuation of $20 billion. It will also be the largest tech listing in Silicon Valley since Uber’s debut last year. Palantir is one of the most valuable private tech companies in Silicon Valley. The company was founded by Peter Thiel, Joe Lonsdale, Nathan Gettings, Steve Cohen, and Alex Karp in 2003. When the company started, it only worked with governments, law enforcement, and defense systems to analyze and process their data, but has since extended its operations into other areas.

Since its founding, the company has attracted venture capital funding of more than $3 billion from investors such as Founders Fund, an investment firm owned by Mr. Thiel; In-Q-Tel, the investment unit of the Central Intelligence Agency, Tiger Global Management; and Fidelity.

Part of the requirements of public listing for companies is the inclusion of at least one woman on their boards. In June, Palantir added on its board Alexandra Wolfe Schliff, a former Wall Street Journal reporter, making her the first woman to ever be on the company’s board. The company also added Spencer Rascoff, a tech executive, and Alexander Moore, one of the company’s early employees, on the board as well.

Once the listing gets completed, it will be part of a move of tech IPOs. Many of the recent offerings have dried up as a result of the volatility caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in the last couple of months. In June, the tides changed and the stock market is starting to boom again and some companies are starting to position themselves to benefit from changes in consumer behavior.