Mar 2, 2021 - Economy

Mobile ad tech company Applovin files for IPO

Kia Kokalitcheva

Illustration of a phone dispensing money. — Illustration: Annelise Capossela/Axios

Applovin, a mobile ad tech company that's expanded into video game publishing, has filed with the SEC to go public on the Nasdaq under the ticker symbol APP.

Why it matters: Applovin was one of the more high-profile casualties of CFIUS' heightened scrutiny of deals involving Chinese investors early on during Donald Trump's presidency.

After initially agreeing to sell itself to Chinese buyout firm Orient Hontai Capital, the company changed the deal to debt financing following regulatory pushback.

By the numbers:

In 2020, the mobile ad tech firm saw a net loss of $125.93 million on $1.45 billion in revenue. In 2019, it had $119.04 million in profit on $994.1 million in revenue.
In 2020, the company counted 172 enterprise clients, defined as customers generating at least $125,000 in the trailing 12 months, and 1.5 million monthly active players (unique consumer mobile devices using one of its apps), generating $41 in monthly average revenue.
Applovin's biggest shareholders include Applovin's cofounders, KKR, Orient Hontai Capital, Angel Pride Holdings and Nimble Ventures.

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Mobile ad tech company Applovin files for IPO

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