Roblox, a US-based online immersive gaming platform backed by internet group Tencent, is looking to go public at an expected valuation of up to $8bn, people familiar with the matter have told Reuters.
The company is in discussions with investment banks about whether to seek an initial public offering or opt for a direct listing.
Founded in 2004 as DynaBlocks, Roblox operates an online platform that allows users to create games that can be shared with and played by other users. Games are free to play but users can purchase items such as clothing and weapons for their avatars.
Some games, such as Jailbreak, which lets players act either as prisoners or guards, generate millions of dollars per year for their developers, according to the New York Times. Roblox had 120 million active monthly players by the end of July this year, according to The Verge.
The company raised $150m in a February 2020 series G round led by Andreessen Horowitz and backed by Tencent, Temasek, Altos Ventures, Meritech Capital and Tiger Global Management that valued it at $4bn, bringing its total disclosed funding to about $550m.
Greylock Partners and Tiger Global co-led a $150m round for Roblox in mid-2018 that included Altos Ventures and fellow existing backers Index Ventures and Meritech. The latter two had co-led a $92m round for the company in 2017 and its earlier investors include First Round Capital.
