The Latest: Slack becomes latest tech company to go public

By The Associated Press

NEW YORK — The Latest on Slack’s IPO (all times local):

12:30 p.m.

Shares of work messaging platform Slack have begun trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker “WORK.”

The San Francisco company’s shares opened trading at $38.25 and quickly jumped 9 per cent to $42 in midday trading.

Slack’s initial public offering is using an unusual approach known as a direct list. In such cases, a company doesn’t hire underwriters or sell new shares to raise money; it simply lists existing shares.

Slack aims to replace traditional work communication like email with its own messaging platform. Users start “channels,” or a group chat with a specific topic, rather than starting an email string about a subject.

Slack’s listing is the latest in several highly anticipated tech IPOs. Rideshare companies Uber and Lyft, video conferencing company Zoom Video Communications and digital scrapbooking site Pinterest have all gone public in recent weeks.

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9:45 a.m.

Shares of work messaging platform Slack are expected to start trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker “WORK.”

The San Francisco company is set to start trading Thursday in what’s known as a direct listing.

Unlike a traditional initial public listing, under a direct listing a company doesn’t hire underwriters or sell new shares to raise money, it just lists existing shares. There is no offering price.

In a regulatory filing, Slack said the volume weighted average price of shares that changed hands in the private market from February through May was $26.38.

Slack aims to replace traditional work communication like email with its own messaging platform.

Other technology companies that made a splash by going public include Uber and video conferencing company Zoom Video Communications.

The Associated Press

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