Messaging app Line says still considering IPO
Popular Japanese messaging app Line said Friday it was still considering plans for an initial public offering, after a report said it had shelved the sale for a second year in a row.
Line's owner, South Korean Internet firm Naver, was preparing an IPO for the company in 2014, but reportedly postponed it to focus on the messaging app's expansion.
It was later reported that Line shares could start trading in Japan -- and possibly New York -- as early as this summer in a deal that could value it at more than $8 billion.
But the Wall Street Journal on Thursday cited unnamed sources as saying that Line had delayed the plan again until at least next year.
Responding to the report, Tokyo-based Line said it was still mulling a sale.
"Our company has never cancelled plans for an IPO -- we're still in the review process," a spokeswoman told AFP.
"As far as the timing is concerned, we will look at the situation with global markets and our firm's own performance in deciding when to go ahead with a sale."
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