China’s 58 Home Seeks U.S. IPO of $2 Billion Online Services Arm

58 Home, owned by China’s Craigslist equivalent 58.com Inc., is close to completing a private fundraising en route to a U.S. initial public offering that could value the online services platform at as much as $2 billion, people familiar with the matter said.

The business, known locally as 58 Daojia, is seeking funds to bankroll an expansion into China’s competitive online services arena. It’s now wrapping up a pre-IPO financing round at a valuation of more than $1 billion, the people said, requesting not to be named because the matter is private. Once that’s done, 58 Home intends to prepare for a U.S. debut in which it will seek a valuation of between $1.5 billion and $2 billion, one of the people said.