Groupon on Thursday reportedly met with investment banks to discuss an initial public offering, with valuations of up to $15 billion.
"As usual, we don't comment on speculation about our business," said Julie Mossler, a spokeswoman for Groupon.
The purpose of the meetings, first reported by CNBC, was to brief potential underwriters for an IPO as early as spring. During the "bakeoff" meetings Groupon was valued at around $1 billion.
However last night the New York Times reported that during the meetings, banks pitched "dizzying valuations" of up to $15 billion.
"A public offering, if it happens, will be a significant milestone for the startup, led by its young founder, Andrew Mason, whose quirky personality has helped shaped the site," the Times wrote. "The offering, which would also be among the most anticipated since Google's in 2004, would also represent the highest valuation of the company to date.
Groupon, which famously rejected a $5 billion-plus buyout offer from Google last December, has certainly had a momentous year.
On Tuesday, Groupon CEO Andrew Mason confirmed that the company had raised $950 million, a record amount of venture capital funding for a startup (previously set by DreamWorks Animation SKG, as the Times notes).
At the same time, there is growing doubt over Groupon's multibillion-dollar valuations. Over at SeekingAlpha columnist Albert Babayev writes, "The $15 billion valuation is then 125x earnings (Apple is 23x) for an unsustainable company that offers an easy to replicate model. Don't forget, Google didn't want to pay more than $6 billion for the company and a month later they're valued at $15 billion! I'd trust Google."
Last year, Groupon said in a press release, it expanded from one to 35 cities, launched in 500 new markets, upped its subscriber numbers 2,500 percent to 50 million, and served up 100,000 deals from 58,000 local businesses.
At the end of December, the company also hired its first chief financial officer, Jason Child, an Amazon veteran of 12 years. It is also apparently adding 70,000 sq. ft. to its Chicago headquarters.