Cerebras (Stay Tuned), Chime Hires a Bank, Geothermal

Here is the September 30th Access IPOs newsletter. Subscribe here. 

Cerebras IPO News

On Wednesday, September 25th, 2024, Bloomberg reported:

Cerebras Systems is planning to kick off its initial public offering this week with a view to raising as much as $1 billion in a New York listing… That could value the company at $7 billion to $8 billion.

It seemed the S-1 would drop by Friday. Bloomberg has nailed these reports in the past.

But this time, crickets.

We don’t know why it wasn’t released, but it could be as simple as the SEC didn’t get to it (it released a few others Friday evening).

So stay tuned; the Cerebras IPO filing could drop today or this week. I have faith in the Bloomberg reporters on this, but we’ll see if they uncover anything new today (e.g., a reason for the pause).

Why is Cerebras so important (and why do I keep writing about it)?

• It could ignite the next broader IPO window, lasting a year or more and enabling dozens of venture-backed startups to go public.
• Cerebras will be the very first AI pure-play IPO. There are few, if any, large AI pure-play public companies but dozens of private ones.
• Several pre-IPO investors already own Cerebras. It has been available on Linqto, ​Hiive​, and other pre-IPO marketplaces for several months.

Monitor the latest S-1 filings for the drop, and I’ll post a PDF of the S-1 on my ​Cerebras IPO page​. I’m also covering the developments as they happen on ​X.com​.

Chime is Not a Bank But Hired One

There’s a common refrain in fintech. It goes like this:

[Fintech Company] is a technology company, not a bank. Banking services provided by [Actual Bank].

Startups like ​Chime​ and others have mistakenly called themselves banks or inferred it on their websites or in advertising when they aren’t U.S. chartered banks.

The FDIC, the agency that runs the insurance program that backs our bank deposits, doesn’t like this, even if the cool banking app enables various banking activities.

That said, Chime is a popular banking app with seven million active members (according to a Forbes interview with CEO Chris Britt). It’s a long-time IPO candidate, first expressing its intent in late 2021.

Chime’s valuation was estimated at $35-$45 billion back then. It hired Goldman Sachs to lead a 2022 IPO but never materialized due to abysmal market conditions.

I suspect Goldman Sachs told Chime to wait, but the company missed the window due to the advice. They’ve since dropped GS as the lead.

Bloomberg reported in September 2024 that Chime is now working with Morgan Stanley to conduct its 2025 IPO — a real bank.

IPO Radar

I write a handful of new deep dives each month, monitor the news, and update existing content when companies achieve significant milestones on the path to an IPO (raise new funds, hire CFO, file confidentially, hire bank, etc.).

​Fervo Energy​ — This geothermal startup leverages technologies developed in the oil and gas drilling industries to build cost-efficient, 24/7, carbon-free energy plants.

​Aptera​ — Solar cars are here. Aptera is a long-shot startup tapping customers and fans to equity crowdfund its way to a business model as sustainable as its cars.

​EnergyX​ — This crowdfunded lithium extraction company has big ambitions, almost as big as its founder’s ego (“Egan for President 2036!”). Beware, this pre-revenue company has a great sales pitch but faces a tough road ahead.

​Fanatics​ — The dominant sports apparel eCommerce startup says it doesn’t need to raise new funds but is nonetheless tendering shares to provide liquidity to employees at a $25 billion valuation (down from $31 billion).

Featured image via DepositPhotos used under license.