Trustpilot, one of the world’s leading online business review platforms, is accelerating plans for a London flotation that will provide a boost to the City’s credentials as a magnet for leading technology companies.
Sky News has learnt that Trustpilot, which is based in Copenhagen, held talks this week with a number of major investment banks about an initial public offering (IPO) that could take place as soon as the first quarter of next year.
The company, which was founded in 2007 by Peter Muhlmann, a Danish entrepreneur, is a leading name in Europe’s internet economy.
Image: The float will be a boost for the City
It boasts hundreds of thousands of merchants on its platform, and is viewed billions of times every month.
Most of its revenue is generated from companies which subscribe to its services.
Trustpilot now records more than $100m (£76m) in annual sales, meaning a $1bn (£774m) valuation at IPO – which would make it the latest European tech company to achieve ‘unicorn’ status – is far from unrealistic.
The company has worked with Morgan Stanley, the Wall Street bank, on earlier private capital-raisings, but is likely to appoint a syndicate of firms to work on a flotation in the coming weeks, according to banking sources.
Raising money from a public listing would enable the company to accelerate its expansion, the bankers said.
The site has offices as far afield as Melbourne, New York and Berlin, and employs more than 700 people globally.
Image: Companies including Deliveroo are also in talks about going public in the UK
Trustpilot last raised $55m (£42m) from investors in a Series E round in March last year.
Among the funds which participated in the round were Draper Esprit, the London-listed venture capital group, and Sunley House Capital Management, a fund affiliated to the private equity group Advent International.
The online reviews site is chaired by Tim Weller, the British serial entrepreneur who has steered a number of successful tech and media companies through public listings.
Last year, it appointed Angela Seymour-Jackson, a director at public companies including the insurer Esure and asset manager Janus Henderson, to its board.
Further appointments are likely ahead of an IPO.
Image: Trustpilot recently announced measures aimed at strengthening consumers’ faith in reviews on its platform. File pic
Like other review sites, Trustpilot has at times attracted scepticism over its ability to weed out fake reviews.
To improve users’ trust in content posted on the site, it has introduced features such as one which allows consumers to see how many complaints have been deleted.
“There has never been a greater need for trust online and in the world which is why we keep pushing the boundaries of what’s possible in the review space,” Mr Muhlmann said at the time of its last fundraising.
In August, it announced further measures aimed at strengthening consumers’ faith in reviews posted on its platform.
Its preparations for an IPO are a further boost to what has in 2020 been a lacklustre market for flotations in London.
THG Holdings, the parent company of online beauty retailer The Hut Group, was by far the City’s biggest float of the year.
A string of other tech-led companies, including Deliveroo, Darktrace and Moonpig Group, are also in talks about going public in the UK.
Trustpilot was unavailable for comment.