M&A activity could signal strong 2025 IPO market: VC Expert
PitchBook senior venture analyst Kyle Stanford joins Madison Mills on Catalysts to discuss the outlook for initial public offerings (IPOs) and venture capital (VC) in 2025. Stanford emphasizes that 2025's VC fundraising hinges on IPO activity. He notes that if IPOs don't accelerate until the second half of the year, "there's not going to be a huge wave of distributions." However, he acknowledges that merger-and-acquisition (M&A) activity could boost distribution levels. "That would really give us a good look at what we can expect in 2025," he adds, referring to potential first-quarter M&A momentum. Stanford identifies several mature unicorns primed for IPO, including Chime, Discord, Patreon, and Cerebras, noting "they are aging" and "need to get the ball rolling on that exit." However, he acknowledges potential challenges, including market reactions to new administration policies and volatility. "I think the end of the year will be where most of these unicorns are looking to start to go public, especially when they can show full-year 2024 financials," he states. For further insights on how the US Steel (X) - Nippon Steel (NPSCY) deal blockage might impact future M&A activity, watch the full interview above. To watch more expert insights and analysis on the latest market action, check out more Catalysts here. This post was written by Angel Smith
