EToro, a stock and crypto trading platform aimed at retail investors, is looking to sell shares to the public on the New York Stock Exchange, the Financial Times reported, citing a confidential filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
The sale, which could come as early as the second quarter, could value the company at more than $5 billion, the FT said. Goldman Sachs, Jefferies and UBS are advising the company.
If successful, eToro will join Coinbase (COIN) and Robinhood (HOOD) as one of the few publicly traded companies offering crypto trading in the US. That would be much smaller than both: Coinbase has a market cap of $69 billion and Robinhood $40 billion.
The valuation would also be less than half the level it sought in 2021, when it planned to go public through a $10.4 billion deal with a special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC). The attempt was abandoned at the end of 2022 due to unfavorable market conditions.
In 2023, eToro secured $250 million in funding at a $3.5 billion valuation from investors including SoftBank as its valuation plunged, according to the FT. The valuation has since risen amid a bullish stock and cryptocurrency market, and after the company agreed to pay $1.5 million to settle SEC charges, it operated as an unregistered broker and clearinghouse and facilitated trading in some cryptoassets such as securities.
While eToro’s cryptocurrency trading volume is not known, Finance Magnates reported last year that it increased by more than 500% in the year ending November.
Founded in Israel in 2007, the company reportedly manages $11.3 billion for over 3 million clients. These assets include not only cryptocurrencies, but also stocks and exchange-traded funds.
Last year, as a result of its settlement with the SEC, it agreed to drop trading of several cryptocurrencies in the US, limiting its users in the country to trading bitcoin (BTC), bitcoin cash (BCH) and ether (ETH) .
The company did not respond to a request for comment.