Discord registers confidential request for IPO

The Discord has filed a confidential registration for its initial public offering (IPO), according to Bloomberg. The communication platform for gamers has been working with Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase since March 2025 to finalize the listing. The move comes after the service reached the milestone of 200 million monthly active users by the end of 2025.

The expansion of the user base is a positive point for the business viability. Currently, the Discord audience consumes about 1.9 billion hours in games monthly. The financial interest in the company is solidified; in 2020, it was valued at $7 billion, a value that rose to $15 billion in 2021 after an investment round led by Dragoneer Investment Group.

Founded in 2015 by Jason Citron, Discord even turned down a $12 billion acquisition offer from Microsoft, choosing a long-term independence strategy. In 2025, the management underwent significant technical changes: Citron stepped down as CEO, being replaced by Humam Sakhnini, former president of King and vice president of Activision Blizzard.

However, the transition to the public market is subject to severe criticism. It is regrettable that the IPO is taking place in a period of institutional instability, with Sakhnini being summoned to testify before the US Congress on user radicalization. Furthermore, a security breach in the customer support team affected 70,000 people in October 2025, exposing serious technical vulnerabilities.

Analysts like Eric Bellomo from PitchBook demonstrate skepticism about the company's market value. "The last disclosed valuation is certainly high," he told Bloomberg. "It won't reach that in the public markets." The pressure for financial transparency resulting from the registration with the SEC could reveal whether the business model is truly sustainable or if the $15 billion valuation was overestimated.