A Raspberry Pi 2 Model B single-board computer.
Olly Curtis | Future publication | Future | Getty Images
British computer startup Raspberry Pi will raise £166 million ($211.2 million) from its initial public offering on Tuesday, a rare victory for London’s main stock exchange, which has struggled to attract technology listings.
Raspberry Pi, which makes small, single-board computers, is pricing its shares at 280 pence each. Based on the pricing of its shares, the company is valued at approximately £541.6 million.
Although small compared to other tech companies, the IPO could breathe new life into the struggling London stock exchange, which has been rejected by tech companies in favor of listings in other parts of Europe, and especially the US.
Chip designer Arm, owned by Softbank and headquartered in Britain, chose to enter the US last year.
A number of high-profile industry products support the Raspberry Pi, including Arm and Sony. Last year, Sony Semiconductor Solutions, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation, invested an undisclosed amount in the British startup.
Shares of Raspberry Pi will begin “conditional trading” on Tuesday. This is a period when certain investors – such as institutional investors – can start trading shares on the LSE. Retail investors cannot buy or sell shares at this time and must wait until the start of unconditional trading on Friday.
The Raspberry Pi offering includes 45.9 million ordinary shares to be sold by the company’s existing majority shareholder, Raspberry Pi Mid Co Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Raspberry Pi Foundation. It also includes 2.13 million common shares sold by other shareholders, along with 11.23 million newly issued shares.
If there is more demand, the Raspberry Pi Foundation will be able to issue an additional 4.6 million shares through a so-called overlott option. If the over-allotment option is exercised, the final size of the offer will be £178.9 million.
Raspberry CEO Eben Upton founded the company in 2012 to make computers more accessible to young people. The single board computers can be used for a whole range of applications.
Although it initially became popular with hobbyists, the company says that 72% of its unit sales are for the industrial market, where it is used in factories, for example.
In 2023, Raspberry Pi posted revenues of $265.8 million, up 41% year-over-year from 2022.