Business Solution Firm 'Box' Moves Towards IPO

In a month that has seen the tech world react to Microsoft's announcement of a new CEO and earnings reports from both Apple and Google, Box, a business oriented cloud storage firm, has made covert moves towards an IPO. Box filed under a provision of the JOBS Act that allows companies with fewer than one billion dollars in annual revenue to file secretly. Last December, Box completed an initial funding round of $100 million resulting in a $2 billion valuation. Dropbox, Box’s biggest competitor, recently received between $250-$450 million of funding with a $10 billion evaluation. Although it may appear that Box is being dwarfed by its competitor’s sheer size, it’s important to make a distinction between these two company's goals. Box has been very forward in describing itself as a firm geared towards businesses.

The firm has leveraged itself as the premier cloud sharing service for business and enterprise by offering integration with Google Apps and database systems such as Salesforce.com. Although it is much larger, Dropbox lacks Box’s direction and focus. Dropbox prides itself on its large user base but has not yet created a reliable revenue stream. This has not been a problem for Box because it has a stable base of paying users. Dropbox’s user base is comprised of everyday consumers who can manage all their cloud computing needs with the company’s free storage option of up 2 gigabytes. Box’s public offering is slated to take place sometime in April with the goal of raising $500 million. The company's expected expansion of both its cloud capabilities and business integration will make Box a promising investment option once it becomes publicly traded.
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Nick Philip