IPO roundup: OpenAI valuation gains on Anthropic, Nebius rival Nscale takes a hit

Last week, prospective Anthropic investors lowered their valuation estimates ahead of its IPO after tech stocks sold off following the U.S. midterm elections. They are now discussing a valuation of $1.2-1.3 trillion, with some considering as little as $1.1 trillion, versus the $2 trillion Anthropic had originally been seeking. Meanwhile, rival AI lab OpenAI raised around $11 billion at a $1.25 trillion valuation in a funding round that could reach $20 billion. Here is Oninvest’s roundup of last week’s biggest stories in the IPO space.

Anthropic: Prospective investors lowered their valuation estimates ahead of the company’s IPO after a broad selloff in tech stocks following the U.S. elections, Bloomberg reports, citing sources. Investors are now discussing a valuation of $1.2-1.3 trillion, with some considering as little as $1.1 trillion. Investors had previously valued the company at $1.4-1.5 trillion, while Anthropic itself was seeking more than $2 trillion as recently as late September. The shift followed Thursday’s 6.4% plunge in the Nasdaq 100, which wiped a record $2.3 trillion off the market value of its constituents in a single day. Investors also doubt Anthropic will go public in November, according to Reuters.

OpenAI: The company raised around $11 billion in the first stage of a new funding round at a $1.25 trillion valuation, Bloomberg reports, citing sources. The round could reach $20 billion, with the management expecting to close the remainder in the coming weeks. OpenAI had initially sought to raise at least $30 billion at a $1.4 trillion valuation but scaled back its plans amid a selloff in AI stocks and investor concerns about heavy spending on data centers. The new round follows OpenAI’s decision to push back its IPO to 2027.

ElevenLabs: The voice AI developer could start preparing for an IPO in 2028, Bloomberg reports, citing CEO Mati Staniszewski. Founded in 2022, the start-up develops technology that powers voice AI agents for sales teams and call centers and can also narrate audiobooks and translate ads. ElevenLabs recently completed a $300 million employee tender offer that valued it at $22 billion, twice its February valuation. The management expects demand for voice AI agents to grow among businesses, though ElevenLabs faces competition from Alibaba and U.S. developers including Fish Audio.

Armani: Giorgio Armani’s heirs favor taking his fashion house public over selling it to a major industry player, Reuters reports, citing sources. The designer’s will calls for his heirs to sell around 15% of the company 12-18 months after his death, then sell a further 30-54.9% or complete an IPO within three to eight years. Armani is valued at an estimated EUR5-7 billion. Talks are already underway to sell the initial stake by March 2027, with L’Oréal and EssilorLuxottica showing the most interest. The heirs are considering splitting the stake among several investors to preserve their flexibility ahead of a listing.

Nscale: The UK AI start-up, which is preparing for an IPO at a $35 billion valuation, lost out on a potential deal with Microsoft worth tens of billions of dollars, the Financial Times and Bloomberg report, citing sources. Microsoft passed on an option to more than double the computing capacity it rents at a Texas data center, leaving Nscale to find new customers. Microsoft had previously pulled out of a $3 billion deal in the UK, and construction on Nscale’s largest project, in West Virginia, has run into delays.

Uniper: The German state-owned energy company adopted a new dividend policy to make itself more attractive to investors ahead of a potential IPO, Reuters reports. The management is targeting annual dividend growth of 7% and has proposed a payout of EUR0.77 per share for 2026 versus EUR0.72 a year earlier. Germany is considering a partial listing or a stake sale to a strategic or financial investor to reduce its holding in Uniper. The company could be valued at up to EUR14 billion including net cash.

Rohlik: The Czech online grocer is considering going public, and Prague, previously considered as one of two venues for a dual listing, could now be the sole venue, Bloomberg reports, citing founder and CEO Tomáš Čupr. A final decision on an IPO is still pending. Rohlik, which became the first Czech unicorn in 2021, posted positive adjusted EBITDA for the first time in its fiscal year ended in April. The management expects automation to help keep the business profitable and is considering expanding into Poland and branching out into robotics.

vVardis: The Swiss dental start-up, whose investors include Apollo Global Management and OrbiMed, aims to raise up to $228.6 million in a U.S. IPO, Bloomberg reports. The company plans to offer 9.524 million shares at $21-24 apiece, giving it a valuation of around $4.4 billion at the top of the range. vVardis develops treatments for early-stage cavities that require no drilling. Its Curodont products have reached more than 20,000 dental practices since their U.S. launch in 2024. In the first half of 2026, revenue more than tripled to $28.6 million versus a year earlier, and the net loss narrowed to $27.8 million. The company plans to list its shares on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol VVVV.

Yangtze Memory Technologies: China’s largest maker of NAND flash memory chips put preparations on hold for a $4.9 billion Shanghai IPO amid a stock market slump and tighter regulatory scrutiny, Reuters reports, citing sources and an internal company memo. The offering, which could have been Asia’s second-largest this year, was slated for Shanghai’s STAR Market, China’s answer to the Nasdaq. The delay could last several months, with the listing now expected in the first half of 2027, the sources said.

Kunlunxin: The $2 billion Hong Kong IPO of Baidu’s AI chip unit could slip to 2027 because of a delay in securing approval from China’s securities regulator, Bloomberg reports, citing sources. The company filed confidentially in January and had expected approval in the summer. Kunlunxin designs chips for servers and data centers and is considered one of China’s leading makers of AI accelerators alongside Huawei and Cambricon. Baidu called reports of a possible delay “market rumors.”

OPay: The SoftBank-backed fintech called off its $304 million U.S. IPO following a regulatory inquiry in an undisclosed country, Reuters reports. OPay, whose main market is Nigeria, stated that the inquiry concerns a market immaterial to its business and would have no impact on its financial performance or operations. OPay had previously priced 16 million American depositary shares at $19 apiece, the bottom of its stated range, valuing the company at around $4 billion.

DIP Holding: The Dubai-based company’s $529 million IPO drew orders from major investors including Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, the Public Investment Fund, and a unit of Blackstone, Bloomberg reports. Demand for the offering, the UAE’s first this year, was around four times the amount on offer. Parent company Dubai Investments sold a 20% stake in DIP at AED1.12 ($0.30) per share, valuing the company at around $2.6 billion. DIP owns Dubai Investments Park, a 2,300-hectare development that includes warehouses, hotels, and commercial real estate. The shares are set to begin trading on November 11.

AI infrastructure: Democrats’ victory in the U.S. midterm elections heightened investor concerns about the IPO prospects of companies tied to AI infrastructure, Bloomberg reports. Wins by candidates who backed restrictions on data center construction could drive up costs and delay new projects. Shares of cloud providers CoreWeave and Nebius have each plunged more than 40% over the last month, Bloomberg notes. The selloff has added to uncertainty ahead of planned listings by Nscale, Aggreko, and SoftBank-backed SB Energy. Investors say companies with computing capacity already online will have an advantage.

Hong Kong: Companies preparing to go public are disclosing more about their ties to investors as regulators step up scrutiny, Bloomberg reports. Chinese memory products maker Hosin Electronics, which is seeking to raise $156 million, disclosed that strategic investors could take up to 42% of the offering. They include Transsion and Longsys, whose own IPOs Hosin previously backed. Hong Kong’s securities regulator has asked investment banks to scrutinize such ties more closely to prevent demand from being artificially inflated, Bloomberg notes. Jiangsu Xinde Semiconductor disclosed similar ties to its investors.