Slack Goes It Alone

In April 2018, Spotify underwent a direct listing on the NYSE. Now, it appears that corporate messaging service Slack will also undertake a direct listing. Both companies have sufficient cash on the balance sheet, which reduces the need to raise cash from a traditional IPO. The direct listing will provide liquidity for Slack's current shareholders and eliminate the floatation costs associated with an IPO. It will interesting to see if Slack initiates a stock buyback in the near future, similar to what Spotify did.