Momo, a Chinese location-based meeting and messaging app with 60 million monthly users, announced terms for its IPO on Friday. The Beijing, China-based company plans to raise $216 million by offering 16 million ADSs at a price range of $12.50 to $14.50. At the midpoint of the proposed range, Momo would command a fully diluted market value of $2.7 billion.
The company includes September IPO Alibaba (BABA) among its primary shareholders. Alibaba is expected to purchase $50 million worth of shares in a concurrent private placement and invest $10 million on the IPO. October 2013 IPO 58.com (WUBA) also plans to purchase $10 million worth of shares in a private placement.
Momo could be the second China-based social network to IPO in the US this year; Weibo (WB) has gained 6% since its April IPO. Another app with a dating angle, Zoosk (ZSK), has been on file for a $100 million IPO since April.
Momo, which was founded in 2011 and booked $29 million in sales for the 12 months ended September 30, 2014, plans to list on the NASDAQ under the symbol MOMO. Morgan Stanley, Credit Suisse, J.P. Morgan and China Renaissance are the joint bookrunners on the deal. It is expected to price during the week of December 8, 2014.
