Mark Zuckerberg now an IPO advocate
Despite all the “stuff” he’s taken since Facebook went public, Mark Zuckerberg is now a big advocate of IPO🅠s.
The hoodie-clad CEO, who spok꧙e at Wednesd𝓰ay’s TechCrunch’s Disrupt conference, said he has done a 180 since the time he used to be “afraid” of going public and advised others to stay private as long as possible.
N💎ow, he would tell 🎀companies like Twitter to embrace Wall Street.
“I’m the person you want to ask last how to make a smooth IPO,” Zuckerberg said jokinglꦍy, referring to Facebook’s “turbulent” first year as a publ🦂ic company.
Still, he said he now has great respect for the pᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚrocess, which actually made him rethink his entire 💝company. He referred to the fact that after going public Facebook built a mobile business.
“We tooᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚk a lot of [stuff]” for subpar mobile product🐷s, he said.
Of course, it’s easy for him to embrace public markets nꦺow that Facebook is riding well above its $38 debut price from May 2012. In fact, the stock closed Wednesday at an all-time of $45.04.
His appearance is becoming ♏a ♏yearly tradition, and last year before the
TechCrunch event, Facebook stock was below $20.
Zuckerberg also revealed ⛎that he was sweating in his hoodie when
Facebook’s stock was diving last year.
“I was💎 worried people would leave the company or people would be really de🦄moralized,” he said.
Yahoo! CEO Marissa Mayer also was interviewed at the San Francisco event, and touted her company’s o🉐wn mobile growth — 350 million smartphone and tablet users.
Interviewer Michael Arrington also had her sign a copy of Vogue, the one feat💯uring a glamorous photo spread of the ൲executive, which had drawn plenty of attention.