July 1 - Bending Spoons has moved to list in the U.S. after pricing its initial public offering above the marketed range, selling 58 million shares at $29 each to raise $1.68 billion. The offering sets an $18.4 billion valuation for the Milan-based technology group based on outstanding shares disclosed in its filings.
The flotation arrives at a time of heightened scrutiny for software names, after a period earlier this year when the sector came under pressure owing to investor concerns that artificial intelligence could upend established business models. Software companies have been notably scarce among U.S. initial public offerings so far in 2026, even as the broader market saw substantial capital raised in the quarter, with proceeds pushed past a record-breaking $100 billion by a steady flow of large deals and a major listing.
Bending Spoons’ approach blends elements of private equity with a technology operator mindset. The company acquires digital businesses and then pursues a turnaround strategy that the firm says includes workforce reductions and technology overhauls. Since 2025, its acquisitions have included streaming platform Brightcove, video platform Vimeo, internet brand AOL and ticketing marketplace Eventbrite.
The firm's origin traces back to the liquidation of a failed diary app, after which the founders used the remaining $40,000 to start Bending Spoons. From that modest beginning, the company has grown into one of Europe’s more prominent technology groups, completing more than 50 acquisitions and identifying over 1,000 digital businesses it views as potential future targets, according to its IPO prospectus.
Market observers say the listing will act as a data point for software investors, but that context matters given the dearth of comparable deals. "It’ll definitely be a data point for the software industry, but that may simply be due to the scarcity of deals here. Bending Spoons has a very different profile compared to most software IPOs in the pipeline," said Matt Kennedy, senior strategist at Renaissance Capital, which provides IPO-focused research and ETFs.
Kennedy also noted the firm’s narrative around acquiring and integrating businesses and the appeal of using AI to improve acquired assets, while flagging a desire for a longer performance record to fully validate that strategy. The company’s model differs from conventional private equity in that it does not resell the businesses it acquires; instead, it aims to integrate and operate them under the Bending Spoons umbrella.
The listing will therefore be watched for what it reveals about investor willingness to back hybrid models that combine buy-and-fix tactics with technology-driven operational changes. For the software sector more broadly, the IPO will provide fresh information at a time when fewer pure software listings have been available to gauge demand.
Investors and analysts will likely monitor how the market receives Bending Spoons’ share debut and whether the firm’s mix of acquisitions, cost and technology interventions, and the company’s articulation of AI-enabled fixes can translate into sustained performance under public-market scrutiny.