On April 15th (local time), American design software company Figma announced its move to go public by submitting documents for an initial public offering (IPO) to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). This development comes 16 months after Adobe's acquisition deal, valued at $20 billion, was terminated in December 2023 due to objections from regulatory authorities in the European Union (EU) and the United Kingdom. Figma, which has achieved a market valuation of $20 billion (approximately ₩28 trillion) in just a decade since its founding, is now poised to test its strength in the stock market, drawing keen attention from the global software industry.

Figma's journey of innovation began in 2012 with the ambitious venture of two Brown University students, Dylan Field and Evan Wallace. Having harbored a passion for entrepreneurship since their college days, they were selected for Peter Thiel's "Thiel Fellowship," a program that provided them with the wings to realize their dreams.

Initially, their goal was to develop a Photoshop-like image editing software that could run on web browsers. However, considering the technical complexities and scope of the project, they pivoted their direction several times. Ultimately, they focused on the clear objective of "interface design" and dedicated themselves to developing a web-based, real-time collaborative design tool, resulting in the birth of an innovative product.

Figma's successful strategy lay in securing a strong competitive edge that differentiated it from Adobe's "Photoshop" and the macOS-exclusive "Sketch," which dominated the design tool market at the time. By being web-based, Figma offered accessibility regardless of the operating system. Furthermore, its implementation of real-time collaboration redefined design work as a "collaboration platform." This innovative environment, allowing designers to work simultaneously and share ideas without the constraints of physical space, garnered an explosive response.

Adobe's Massive Acquisition Falls Through, Paving the Way for IPO

Figma's potential gained global recognition in September 2022 when Adobe announced its acquisition of Figma for a staggering $20 billion (approximately ₩28.5 trillion), the largest acquisition in the history of the software industry. Field, who was in his early thirties at the time, was expected to achieve tremendous success, becoming a major topic of discussion.

However, the EU Commission and the UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) raised concerns that the merger could significantly restrict competition in the global web-based design services market, leading to regulatory hurdles. Consequently, Adobe terminated the acquisition agreement in December 2023 and was obligated to pay Figma a $1 billion (approximately ₩1.4 trillion) termination fee.

Although the merger with Adobe did not materialize, it is evaluated as an opportunity for Figma to explore its independent growth strategy and pursue an IPO. Figma's core strength lies in providing innovative collaboration features for designers within companies who require joint work on website and app prototypes. Currently, Figma records annual revenue of $600 million (approximately ₩840 billion) and was valued at $12.5 billion (approximately ₩17.5 trillion) in December of last year.

A Bold Challenge Thrown into the Frozen IPO Market

Figma's move to go public is drawing even greater attention as it is announced at a time when the U.S. IPO market is entering another downturn. Earlier this year, expectations of deregulation under the Trump administration led to optimistic forecasts for the revitalization of the U.S. IPO market. However, growing concerns over an escalating global trade war due to President Trump's imposition of massive tariffs have rapidly cooled market sentiment.

In fact, ticket resale platform StubHub and buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) fintech company Klarna have postponed their IPO plans that were scheduled for this week. Additionally, another fintech firm, Chime, has delayed submitting its financial information to regulatory authorities, indicating increasing market uncertainty.

Despite these challenging market conditions, Figma's decision to proceed with its IPO is interpreted as a strong expression of confidence in its business model and growth potential. Industry experts analyze that Figma's real-time collaboration feature has become an essential element for modern companies where remote work and distributed team environments are prevalent. They highly value Figma not merely as a design tool but as a platform that has revolutionized collaboration itself.

The IPO challenge of Figma, which has transformed the paradigm of design collaboration and is writing a success story in the global software market, is drawing worldwide attention to whether it can inject vitality into the frozen market and how it will be evaluated in the public market.

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