WSJ reports: Israeli-US Internet shopping site files for IPO

Unnamed source reports Israeli-American e-commerce concern Borderfree, turns to Wall Street to seek $100 million in offering.

 

Borderfree, an American-Israeli company that is provides American retailers with a platform to reach customers overseas, has confidentially filed for an initial public offering, the Wall Street Journal reported in a blog over the weekend, citing a source it did not identify.

Israeli internet shopping  (illustrative) – Photo: IsraelandStuff/PP

The company, which was previously known as FiftyOne Global Ecommerce, is headquartered in New York, but has an office in Tel Aviv. Its clients include a number of major American retail chains, including Saks Fifth Avenue, Pottery Barn, Sears, Sephora and Neiman Marcus. The company will attempt to raise $100 million in the IPO, and according to Wall Street Journal’s source, Borderfree has hired Credit Suisse and the Royal Bank of Canada in the effort.

The company submitted confidential documents initiating the IPO a number of months ago. American law allows firms like Borderfree with revenues of under a billion dollars to start to process without needing to disclose financial information.

Borderfree is one of the oldest Internet companies on the Israeli scene. It was founded in 1999 by Yuval Tal, Ofer Komem and Miki Ishai. It has an global workforce of about 180 people, of whom 70 are in Tel Aviv. According to the company’s website, it also has offices in Dublin, Shanghai and Toronto. Dan Ciporin is its chairman of the board. Among other ventures, he was CEO of Shopping.com, which got its start in Netanya.

Borderfree’s platform enables retailers to offer products for sale to overseas Internet shoppers who can view pricing in their own currencies and use means of payment that are common in the local market. The company provides payment clearing services as well as delivery services to its retailer clients. It is currently considering expanding its client base beyond the United States to a number of locations including Britain and Japan and South America.

Among its backers are Israel’s Pitango Venture Capital, Delta Ventures and Adams Street Partners of the United States. Borderfree was thought to have had about $70 million in sales in 2012, compared to about $40 million the year before.

 

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