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Jewelry Company Brilliant Earth Adds to Year’s U.S. IPO Rush

Jewelry Company Brilliant Earth Adds to Year’s U.S. IPO Rush

Digital-first jewelry company Brilliant Earth Group Inc. filed for an initial public offering, leading a flurry of planned listings.

The San Francisco-based company in its filing Monday listed the size of the offering as $100 million, a placeholder that will change when terms of the share sale are set.

Amplitude Inc., saying it’s pioneering a new category it calls digital optimization software, filed Monday for a direct listing in which, unlike a traditional IPO, its shares would begin trading publicly without raising capital for the company. The company, also based in San Francisco, plans to list its shares on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol AMPL.

Remitly Global Inc., a banking and money-transfer company focused on serving immigrants, filed to go public in an IPO, also listing a placeholder amount of $100 million. The Seattle-based company plans to list its shares on Nasdaq under the symbol RELY.

The filings will add to what is already a record year for U.S. listings, which is continuing as companies rush to go public in the final months of 2021. Including special purpose acquisition companies, IPOs on U.S. exchanges have raised a combined total of more than $241 billion since Jan. 1, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Pandemic Uptick

Like many other online and luxury retailers, Brilliant Earth’s sales increased during the coronavirus pandemic as store and restaurant shutdowns left shoppers with extra time as well as cash.

Brilliant Earth’s sales rose to $163 million in the first half of this year from $92 million a year ago, according to its filing. Its net income jumped to almost $11 million from $182,000 during the same period.

The company’s founders will have more than half of the shareholder voting power after the listing and will continue to control the company, according to the filing.

Brilliant Earth’s offering is being led by JPMorgan Chase & Co., Credit Suisse Group AG, Jefferies Financial Group Inc. and Cowen Inc. The company plans for its shares to trade on Nasdaq under the symbol BRLT.

Remitly’s offering is being led by Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and JPMorgan.

While banks don’t underwrite direct listings as they do in IPOs, they do advise companies in their trading debuts. Amplitude said its advisers are Morgan Stanley, Bank of America Corp., Citigroup Inc., KeyBanc Capital Markets, Robert W. Baird & Co., UBS Group AG and William Blair & Co.

©2021 Bloomberg L.P.