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Airbnb Plans to File Confidentially for IPO in August

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Re: Airbnb Plans to File Confidentially for IPO in August

#51

Post by an_opabinia »

jariel wrote: post #49
lasgsf wrote: post #46

Not an employee but overall I am quite bullish on Airbnb as ironically they will be the definition of a what a post-covid travel company will become. Couple points in their favour: 1. Work from home becomes work from anywhere: The WFH trend is here to stay and will grow. If you have an option why not stay anywhere in world and work vs. close by home? I expect we will see a big % of WFH markets be global travelers. Pr…

? They are being devastated by COVID which could linger for a while. Their biggest risk is regulatory and taxation. Many AirBnBs are illegal, and what will really grind government to act are the potential lost revenues. I think they will do just fine, it's a matter of valuation.

Of the last $5,000 I’ve spent on AirBnB, not a single dollar was spent on a legal host.

Re: Airbnb Plans to File Confidentially for IPO in August

#52

Post by Guest19023892 »

lasgsf wrote: post #46

Not an employee but overall I am quite bullish on Airbnb as ironically they will be the definition of a what a post-covid travel company will become. Couple points in their favour: 1. Work from home becomes work from anywhere: The WFH trend is here to stay and will grow. If you have an option why not stay anywhere in world and work vs. close by home? I expect we will see a big % of WFH markets be global travelers. Pr…

> If you have an option why not stay anywhere in world and work vs. close by home? I expect we will see a big % of WFH markets be global travelers.

Well, if a business is allowing their employees to work from home due to COVID, they don't want them traveling off abroad and being classified as tax residents of various countries.

If people are moving to cheaper cities or locations in their own country, getting a long term Airbnb isn't very practical. Most will use whatever real estate listing website or service that is prevalent in their region.

Re: Airbnb Plans to File Confidentially for IPO in August

#53

Post by jdm2212 »

adventured wrote: post #40
geronb wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Airbnb is actually doing very well right now, and is essentially fully recovered if not growing, same as the competitors like VRBO. There's been a huge surge in nearby getaway trips. https://www.financial-world.org/news/news/business/6074/cali...

Given you've posted that twice to this thread now, can you prove what you're saying better than posting a link that doesn't actually support what you're claiming? It's doing very well - versus what? It's profitable? It's not bleeding huge amounts of cash? Its sales are higher than this time last year? Please provide some potent information to defend the premise. Airbnb had to fire 1/4 of its staff. It's doing very we…

> Airbnb had to fire 1/4 of its staff

It's not so much "had to fire 1/4 of its staff" as "fired 1/4 of its staff preemptively because by the time you actually have to fire 1/4 of your staff, it's too late". As a bonus, if it turns out the cuts weren't necessary, they look really good going into the IPO because their biggest cost (labor) dropped by a lot.

Re: Airbnb Plans to File Confidentially for IPO in August

#54

Post by vadym909 »

an_opabinia wrote: post #51
jariel wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

? They are being devastated by COVID which could linger for a while. Their biggest risk is regulatory and taxation. Many AirBnBs are illegal, and what will really grind government to act are the potential lost revenues. I think they will do just fine, it's a matter of valuation.

Of the last $5,000 I’ve spent on AirBnB, not a single dollar was spent on a legal host.

I didn't know this was a thing until my friend said he stayed in a guest room of a small country's embassy in SF that the host probably never had permission to rent out.

Re: Airbnb Plans to File Confidentially for IPO in August

#55

Post by canada_dry »

geronb wrote: post #35
canada_dry wrote: post #30

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> employee equity that are set to start expiring in November 2020 and in mid-2021; those shares will become worthless if the company is not trading publicly by then I'd say you nailed it on the head. Because aside from this, it's pretty terrible timing for an industry that's been killed by the virus and won't rebound until it's long over.

Not really. Airbnb has fully recovered, same as VRBO (which is growing about 60% YoY) and having proven that the business has been resilient even during the pandemic can be a good story for the IPO. https://www.financial-world.org/news/news/business/6074/cali...

> Airbnb has fully recovered

That just makes no sense given record unemployment and virus still very much prevalent! Travel and tourism are still significantly below average across the globe.

Re: VRBO... this quote "One of Airbnb's biggest competitors is Vrbo, owned by Expedia Group. The company doesn't break out Vrbo's individual results, but noted it returned to bookings growth in June." I believe is plainly misleading. I'd suggest that the "growth in June" is simply compared to the 80-90% decline from the spring's total lockdown, and likely only a 10-20% increase from that bottom.

The Airbnb report celebrating 1M bookings worldwide is still significantly below the norm (i.e. probably around 10% - tho I can't find clear stats) especially for the summer - so it hasn't "fully recovered" by a long shot.

Re: Airbnb Plans to File Confidentially for IPO in August

#56

Post by refurb »

beambot wrote: post #23
twblalock wrote: post #18

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Couldn't they grant new options to the employees whose options expire? An IPO seems like a pretty big hammer for that particular nail.

Granting new options causes tax headaches: If strike price << fair market value, you get taxed immediately on the illiquid gains.

At granting? I get annual option from my $10B+ annual revenue employer (where strike price < current stock price) and I don't pay tax until the options vest and I choose to exercise. Then I just sell-to-cover.

Re: Airbnb Plans to File Confidentially for IPO in August

#57

Post by jariel »

an_opabinia wrote: post #51
jariel wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

? They are being devastated by COVID which could linger for a while. Their biggest risk is regulatory and taxation. Many AirBnBs are illegal, and what will really grind government to act are the potential lost revenues. I think they will do just fine, it's a matter of valuation.

Of the last $5,000 I’ve spent on AirBnB, not a single dollar was spent on a legal host.

Uber and AirBnB have revealed that the Western World is far more lawless than we had imagined.

Who knew you could just 'start running cabs'.

Even city hall says 'no' ... they just keep going.

It's really bizarre.

Irrespective of whether or now we should allow AirBnB and Uber it's crazy that civic institutions seem to have no control.

If I was mayor and we decided 'no' on Uber I would be fining Uber millions and individual drivers a lot and ask regular cabs and cops to be on the lookout.

It's mind blowing how much tax revenue is being missed out on, and how much money is flying out of the country.

Re: Airbnb Plans to File Confidentially for IPO in August

#58

Post by rorykoehler »

mamon wrote: post #31
tunesmith wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Who's planning for the end of COVID by January? That sounds a lot like how when everyone decided it was over in May. I've heard some optimism about the end of 2021, maybe 2nd half of 2021 for rich countries, but not January.

It's not about finding the vaccine, or virus actually going away. Simply, by Jan 2021 people will be so sick and tired of hearing about COVID that they will say "fuck it" and carry on with their lives as usual. Me personally I'm close to that point already.

Sick of my parents still being alive?

Re: Airbnb Plans to File Confidentially for IPO in August

#59

Post by qppo »

vadym909 wrote: post #54
an_opabinia wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Of the last $5,000 I’ve spent on AirBnB, not a single dollar was spent on a legal host.

I didn't know this was a thing until my friend said he stayed in a guest room of a small country's embassy in SF that the host probably never had permission to rent out.

You haven't lived until you find out your host lied about the address so it wouldn't tip off their landlord, who forbid it in their lease

Re: Airbnb Plans to File Confidentially for IPO in August

#60

Post by asdff »

jariel wrote: post #57
an_opabinia wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Of the last $5,000 I’ve spent on AirBnB, not a single dollar was spent on a legal host.

Uber and AirBnB have revealed that the Western World is far more lawless than we had imagined. Who knew you could just 'start running cabs'. Even city hall says 'no' ... they just keep going. It's really bizarre. Irrespective of whether or now we should allow AirBnB and Uber it's crazy that civic institutions seem to have no control. If I was mayor and we decided 'no' on Uber I would be fining Uber millions and indiv…

if you were mayor in a city like LA you wouldn't have the ability to do anything really unless you had the council on your side, some of whom are currently being charged by the FBI in a corruption probe. Chicago is even worse. Most city governments are completely hobbled by design, powerless, and corrupted.
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