Raspberry Pi eyes £409m London IPO and says need for US float is ‘overblown’
Eben Upton, the co-founder of Raspberry Pi, known for its beginner-friendly coding computers, is exploring a potential London float, which could see the company valued at over £409m.
Originally planned for 2021, the move to the capital’s stock exchange was postponed due to poor listing conditions and global chip shortages.
But speaking at an event in Cambridge for Raspberry Pi’s resellers, chief Upton said: “We have a business now which is ready.”
“Obviously there are market effects that are going to constrain our decisions, but the hope is, when the markets are ready, we’ll be ready as well,” he said.
Following the delay in their IPO plans, Raspberry Pi secured investments from Lansdowne Partners, Ezrah Charitable Trust and Sony’s semiconductor division, valuing the company at around $500m (£409m).
Upton, who co-founded Raspberry Pi Foundation in 2008, said the City appeals as a destination because “there’s good, smart money in London.”
“I think this narrative that you have to run off to the US feels a little overblown,” he added.
It comes amid concerns that British tech firms are opting for listings in New York.
Recently, several large UK firms have favoured US listings, including Arm, construction supplier CRH, and sports betting company Flutter.
Raspberry Pi, which began selling its easy to use computers in 2012, last year reported revenues of $188m (£154m) with an operating profit of $20m (£16m). Upton reckons his company has sold around 55m of its Raspberry Pi computers to date.