Groupon IPO expected in October-November: report

Bargaining website Groupon's planned IPO is back on track after a run-in with regulators and it hopes to go public in late October or early November, the New York Times reported Thursday.

The Chicago-based company, which has enjoyed phenomenal growth since it was founded less than three years ago, could launch an investor road show as early as next month, the Times reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

It said the company had recently resolved a dispute with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regarding a memo to employees from chief executive Andrew Mason that went public, raising concerns it had violated rules on publishing corporate information ahead of an offering.

The company had been planning to price its shares in mid-September but decided to put the IPO on hold amid market turmoil, the Wall Street Journal reported earlier this month.

The New York Times cited people close to the company as estimating it could fetch $25-30 billion in the initial public offering.

(c) 2011 AFP