Airbnb says it will IPO in 2020

Airbnb has made no secret of its wish to eventually trade on the public markets - but investors (new and old) and the market now know it will be in 2020.

The company confirmed the decision in a short statement released today (September 19).

Narrowing down at what point over that 12-month period is unknown at this stage.

Still, the company must be confident that the steps it has put into place during the course of 2019 will be enough to embark on the traditional investor roadshows and corporate logistics by the fourth quarter of this year at the earliest.

A listing of Airbnb on the public markets will, following those for Uber and Lyft during 2019, be one of the most eagerly awaited IPOs in the travel industry in years.

It will also bring into sharp focus the differences or, indeed, similarities on a financial and product scale between it and its self-proclaimed rivals in the shape of Booking Holdings and Expedia Group.

The company's gradual expansion from its historic home-sharing business started taking place in 2016.

Airbnb Adventures launched that year as its first official effort into the tours and activities sector. It later switched to curated, one-day activities but earlier this year resurrected the multi-day strategy.

Bigger signs that the company was growing up and positioning itself as a much bigger travel entity (and igniting the first serious flames of a public listing) came in early-2018 when it made a number of major shifts to the service.

To coincide with its tenth year, Airbnb introduced a “Roadmap” designed to bring annual guest count to more than one billion by 2028.

The strategy targets Airbnb’s core Homes business across new property types – such as Vacation Home and Unique – as well as new tiers including Airbnb Plus and Beyond by Airbnb.

But by far the most significant, in terms of its positioning against other, established online travel agencies, was the introduction of distribution for hotels, initially of the boutique and B&B variety.

* Check these two interviews with Greg Greeley, Airbnb's president of its homes unit, during The Phocuswright Conference 2018...

...and these from Phocuswright Europe 2019.