Airbnb founders Nathan Blecharczyk, Joe Gebbia and Brian Chesky (Airbnb)
There’s another money mint in town as San Francisco startup Airbnb is reportedly in talks to raise funds that would value the company at more than $10 billion, according to the WSJ.
The Journal reports that the private-equity firm TPG — which also has a stake in the ride-sharing service Uber — is in line to lead the funding round, which could total between $400 million and $500 million.
For a reality check, at $10 billion, Airbnb would be worth more than hotel chains like Wyndham ($9.4 billion) and Hyatt ($8.4 billion), but less than Hilton ($22 billion).
It’s not often that start-ups get valued at $10 billion plus, but we’re starting to see a few now with DropBox being worth $10 billion and Facebook buying WhatsApp last month for $16 billion. Reality check: Facebook is worth $174 billion.
But Airbnb is not without its problems. As The Chronicle recently reported, renters in San Francisco are getting evicted for Airbnb-ing their apartments. And last fall, New York’s Attorney General Eric Schneiderman subpoenaed Airbnb for information about its hosts, checking to see if they were violating a law forbidding them from renting their units for less than 30 days if they’re not around.
