Despite the challenges the market contended with in 2021, such as the global shipping crisis, the ongoing pandemic, and rising inflation, a vast number of countries made their public debuts last year. Among these were Coinbase, Robinhood, and the electric vehicle maker Rivian. Of the 399 IPOs in 2021, however, a majority ended the year below their initial returns. And while the 2022 market looks to start off slow due to issues such as the continuing pandemic and chip shortages, many big name companies like Reddit and Flipkart are set to hit the public markets this year.
At the top of this list is the Vietnamese automaker Vinfast, which is a spinoff of Vingroup, a Vietnam-based conglomerate dealing in everything from real estate to health care. Vinfast is pivoting to electric vehicle manufacturing with its eyes on the U.S. and European markets. “As you've seen with Rivian, [electric vehicles are] a very hot space right now,” said Renaissance Capital’s Avery Spear. “They've already started taking preorders, which is kind of around where Rivian was when it was coming to the market.” With a projected $60 billion valuation, Vinfast plans to open 60 showrooms in the U.S. in 2022, begin taking pre-orders in the first half of next year, and have them on the road by the tail end of 2022.
Another company in the automotive industry, Mobileye, also plans to go public in 2022. Mobileye, acquired in 2018 by Intel for $15 billion, is focused on the development of advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS). Now, Intel plans to spin out the business and is eyeing a valuation of as much as $50 billion.
Reddit, a company that has been around since 2005 but saw itself flung into the attention of the media and markets alike in 2021 due to its popular WallStreetBets subreddit, will also go public in 2022 and is aiming for a $15 billion valuation. Despite the risks associated with the ongoing pandemic, the shipping crisis, chip shortage, and rising inflation, these companies all have something unique to offer in their individual spaces and are willing to bet they can make a successful go of going public.
