going dutch the google ipo - berkeley law research.pdf

Berkeley Technology Law Journal Volume 20 | Issue 1 Article 45 J anuary 2005 Going Dutch: The Google IPO Eugene Choo Follow this and additional works at : /btlj Recommended Citation Eugene Choo, Going D utch: The Goog le IP O, 20 Berkeley ech. L.J . 405 (2005). Available at : /btlj/vol20/iss1/45 Link to publisher version (DOI) http://dx ./doi :10.15779/Z38DH4H This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Law Journals and Related Materials at Berkeley Law Scholarship Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Berkeley echnology Law Journal by an authorized administrator of Berkeley Law Scholarship Repository. For more information, please contact jcera@. BUSINESS LAW GOING DUTCH: THE GOOGLE IPO By Eugene Choo The initial public offering (IPO) by Internet search giant Google was arguably the most talked about IPO of 2004. In April 2004, Google foun- ders Larry Page and Sergey Brin announced their intention to take the company public. They surprised investors when they revealed that Google would use a Dutch auction1 process for its IPO, rather than a traditional, investment bank-led offering. Bidding for shares closed on August 18, 2004, and trading commenced on August 19, 2004. GOOGs debut at $85 per share was accompanied by plenty of public- ity and press coverage. The IPO price had dropped from an initial esti- mated range of $108-$135, yet Google still managed to raise $1.67 billion. Of this amount, $1.2 billion went to the company and $473 million went to Google executives and investors selling their shares. 2 Page, Brin, CEO Eric