Rivian, an American electric automaker, has become a publicly traded company after making one of the biggest initial public offerings in history and the world’s largest in 2021.
With its Nasdaq debut, the company’s shares surged up to 53 per cent, giving it a market valuation of more than $100 billion.
Rivian shares started trading on the Nasdaq stock exchange Wednesday at around $78 per share and closed at $100.73, marking a nearly 30 per cent jump from its offering price. Having securities such as options and restricted stock units, Rivian’s fully valuation exceeded $106 billion at its debut price.
The initial public offering (IPO) allowed to generate to raise about $12 billion to fund growth, and that figure could rise to $13.7 billion if the full over-allotment of shares is exercised. This makes it the biggest U.S. IPO since Alibaba Group Holding Ltd went public in September 2014.
The Amazon-backed electric vehicle maker has also become the second most valuable U.S. automaker after Tesla Inc.
Rivian ranked ahead of General Motors at $86.05 billion, Ford Motor at $77.37 billion, and Lucid Group at $65.96 billion.
The electric vehicle maker witnessed a production issue after facing global supply-chain constraints due to the coronavirus pandemic and its impact on suppliers.
In an interview, Rivian Chief Executive R.J. Scaringe said that transition to a public company and the growth in its capital base enables the company to develop promising products and volume and growth in terms of new segments.
Rivian said in a filing that he will hold all outstanding Class B common shares after the IPO and get 10 votes per share.
Founded in 2009 as Mainstream Motors by Scaringe, the company was renamed in 2011 as Rivian, a name derived from “Indian River” in Florida.
Meanwhile, Wall Street’s biggest institutional investors are betting on Rivian to be the next big player in a sector dominated by Tesla.
Rivian has already received a little more than 55,000 pre-orders for its pricey electric pickup truck (the R1T) and SUV (the R1S). However, it ruled out their delivery until the end of 2023.
The Irvine, California-based company intends to make at least one million units a year by the end of the decade. It has a plant in Illinois, and has announced plans to open a second U.S. factory and eventually setting up production in China and Europe.
