Lyft's Risk Factors Are the Stuff of Bad IPO Dreams

  • Lyft defending itself against ‘several thousand’ legal claims
  • Ride-hailing company could also suffer from tech backlash
Photographer: Gabby Jones/Bloomberg
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The risk-factors section of an IPO prospectus is a bit like a transcript of a chief financial officer’s worst nightmares.

For Lyft Inc., which filed publicly for an initial public offering Friday, the long-and-short of it is that it’s a new business that doesn’t know what the future will hold or whether it will turn a profit, ever. The economy could collapse! The brand could deteriorate!