- SoFi is going public via a SPAC backed by billionaire investor Chamath Palihapitiya, according to an announcement made on CNBC on Thursday.
- The personal finance company would be valued at more than $6 billion and the announcement could be imminent, Reuters reported.
- SoFi was founded in 2011 and was valued at $4.3 billion in its last private funding round.
- Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.
SoFi is going public via a merger with a SPAC backed by billionaire investor Chamath Palihapitiya.
Palihapitiya made the announcement on CNBC on Thursday, and Reuters first reported talks of the deal, citing sources familiar with the matter.
SoFi will utilize the Social Capital Hedosophia Holdings Corp V to go public, according to the report. Social Capital Hedosophia Holdings Corp V traded up as much as 48% in Thursday trades.
The deal would value SoFi at more than $6 billion and an announcement could be imminent, Reuters said. SoFi last raised $500 million in 2019 at a valuation of $4.3 billion.
SoFi was founded in 2011 and offers a mobile first personal finance service that includes student loan refinancing, investment services, credit cards and insurance.
SPACs, or blank check companies, have seen a surge in popularity over the past year as companies utilized the vehicle to quickly go public, sidestepping the traditional IPO route that could be time consuming and costly. Palihapitiya himself has backed a number of successful SPACs including Virgin Galactic and Opendoor.
With more than $70 billion raised from SPACs in 2020, Goldman Sachs expects more than $300 billion to be raised via SPACs over the next two years.