Going public

At this year’s IR Impact Awards – US 2025, Duolingo’s head of IR Debbie Belevan swept the board, picking up trophies for best overall IR – mid cap, best IRO – mid cap and best in sector – technology. All of this came just a few years after Belevan joined the language learning app in 2021 as its VP, IR two weeks before the company’s IPO. Since then, Duolingo has seen exponential growth in both its share price and subscriber base. Debbie has become an active member of the IR community, serving as a board member for NIRI.

Stefanie Steiner has taken up the IR reins at Autodoc as it prepares an IPO expected to value it at $2.8 bn. Writing on LinkedIn this week, she says: ‘I am excited to share that I will embark with #AUTODOC on the next stage of my journey. About a week ago, I joined the new team and had a very warm welcome. In such a technology-driven company I have to familiarize myself not only with business model, strategy, financials and the large market that has enormous potential in the years to come, but also with many new programs and tools.…

An IPO isn’t the finish line; it’s the start of a new playbook where credibility and execution become critical drivers of long-term value. Among the many pillars of IPO readiness is a sound and disciplined forecasting methodology. Companies that thrive after going public are the ones that start practicing disciplined forecasting early and consistently hit the targets they set, long before the S-1 is even filed.

Trading platform eToro has promoted its former global PR and communications manager Ilaria Pattareeya Luca to its IR team following its recent IPO.

Other companies topping the shortlists include Duolingo, Moody’s Corporation, JPMorgan Chase & Co and GE Aerospace The IR team at Reddit will hope to turn a successful IPO year into a successful night of award wins, after the social media company picked up six nominations at the upcoming IR Impact Awards – US 2025. The platform, which made its $6.4 bn market debut in March 2024, appears on the shortlists for six awards by nomination, the winners of which will be determined by IR Impact’s panel of expert judges. Awards Reddit could win at the gala event, which takes place…

We hear from IR, recruitment and consultants on how a lack of IR stands out as a ‘natural IPO-readiness gap’

Lithium Royalty Corporation’s president and CEO discusses listing success and the business model that allowed it to buck the trend

High valuations followed by disappointments lead to years of broken trust, says Ricardo Jiminez ​ The greatest asset for any listed company is investor confidence. It is the fundamental pillar that encourages fund managers to invest their money. But companies often believe that their best asset is to keep the share price as high as possible. This is a mistake, because the stock price is the consequence of many factors that are outside companies’ control – from regulatory risks to geopolitical factors and interest rate levels. Confidence, however, has a direct impact on a company’s ability to access markets and…

An IPO always marks a significant milestone in a company’s trajectory. At this point, the business model is validated by the market assigning it a price and a valuation. Regardless of the reasons motivating a company, however – whether it is for the founders to partially divest, finance growth through a capital increase, use the shares as a bargaining chip in acquisitions or increase brand awareness – going public is a risky decision. There are many factors that influence the outcome of an IPO and for which the company can prepare. Going public is a process that requires months of…

Founder of Nasdaq First North-listed firm on weathering the fossil fuel rally and why stock price matters less in such a new sector

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‘Google is not a conventional company,’ reads the the company’s S1, which was filed with the SEC on April 29. And conventional is certainly not the route the company is taking with its IPO.Google has chosen the Dutch auction method to list its shares on Nasdaq, which allows prospective investors to enter a bid for the number of shares they want and at what price. The deal’s underwriters then determine a clearing price at or above which the company’s shares are sold.This isn’t the only way Google’s IPO stands out from the crowd, though. The company has also decided on…