Everyone shook their heads when Snapchat turned down Facebook’s $3 billion acquisition offer in 2013. At the time, Snapchat had zero revenue and almost no assets—what in the world was CEO Evan Spiegel thinking?
But the bold move is clearly paying off. Snapchat has since starting monetizing by adding content partnerships and advertisements to show its growing user base. Now, it’s said to be looking to raise money at a valuation of $19 billion. That’s double Snapchat’s $10 billion valuation from just last year.
If Snapchat hits that $19B valuation, it would put the startup in an exclusive group of privately-held companies valued at over $10 billion, which includes Xiaomi, the world’s largest smartphone maker, and SpaceX, Elon Musk’s space tech company that wants to colonize Mars.
Here’s a look at Snapchat’s potential place in the $10 billion club:
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