Taxi-hailing app operator Go is targeting a valuation of about ¥200 billion ($1.3 billion) for its initial public offering that may raise as much as ¥90 billion, according to people familiar with the matter.
The Goldman Sachs Group-backed company may announce the IPO as soon as next week and aims to list in mid-June, said the people who asked not to be identified as the information was not public. Discussions about the offer structure including size are still ongoing and details are subject to change, the people said.
A spokesperson for Go didn’t respond to requests for comment.
Japan’s most widely-used taxi-hailing provider has been working with banks including Bank of America, Goldman and Nomura Holdings on the IPO, it was reported last month. Go’s taxi booking app has the highest user numbers in Japan, according to a survey in 2024 by ICT Research and Consulting Inc. Inside the country, it competes against Uber Technologies, China-based Didi Global and local provider S.Ride, which Sony Group has invested in.
Goldman invested ¥10 billion in 2023 in a deal valuing Go at ¥135 billion, according to its president. Major shareholder DeNA, which holds about a 26% stake, said in February that Go had submitted an application to list on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.
DeNA shares jumped more than 7%, the most since March, after the report.
