IPO-pedia|Mastercard-backed AvidXchange seeks valuation of nearly $5 bln in IPO

U.S. payments firmAvidXchange expects to list on the Nasdaq on Oct. 13 under the symbol "AVDX".

It is now looking to sell 22 million shares priced between $23 and $25 each. At the top end of the newly announced range, AvidXchange will raise up to $550 million in the IPO. Earlier it had set a range of $21 to $23 per share, aiming to raise up to $506 million.

AvidXchange Holdings Inc said it is aiming for a valuation of nearly $5 billion, after boosting the price range for its initial public offering.Goldman Sachs & Co, J.P. Morgan, BofA Securities and Barclays are among the underwriters for AvidXchange's IPO.

The company makes software that automates payments, invoicing and accounting for small- and mid-sized businesses. It says its platform allows to process invoices faster than paper-intensive methods.

The company leaped to a roughly $2 billion valuation with its latest round of fundraising. According to a statement from AvidXchange, the $260 million round was led by TPG Sixth Street Partners, andAvidXchange already counted venture capitalist Peter Thiel and payments network Mastercard Inc. among its backers.

AvidXchange caters to over 7,000 businesses spanning real estate, financial services, healthcare, media and other industries. According to its website, the company processed around 53 million transactions worth about $145 billion last year.

It also does not have a significant customer concentration, with top 10 customers accounting for less than 15% of revenue in 2020 and in the first half of this year.

Payment companies have been highly successful over the past year, as the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated digital transformation across industries.

AvidXchange generated revenue of $149.6 million in 2019 and $185.9 million in 2020, representing year-over-year growth of 24.3%.

Its gross profit was $62.6 million in 2019 and $85.4 million in 2020, resulting in gross margin of 41.9% in 2019 and 45.9% in 2020. Its net loss was $93.5 million in 2019 and $101.2 million in 2020.