Dropbox wants to know if it's a good idea to go public next year

Dropbox's long-anticipated IPO could take place as early as next year.According to Bloomberg'sAlex Barinka and Manuel Baigorri, Dropbox's management has met with advisors to discuss a possible public listing by 2017. The discussions were initiated by Dropbox to see if it's a good idea to go public next year, though no final decision has been made, the report said.Dropbox's representative was not immediately available for comment.Dropbox, worth$10 billion, is one of the most richly valued startups in tech and could easily become one of the most high-profiletech IPOs in a long time.But the online storage company has faced a number of questions over its growth in recent years, especially after its management famously told employees to cut back and save more. The company has never disclosed its financial numbers but is reported to have generatedover $500 million in revenue last year, and its CEO Drew Houston recently said the company's free cash flow positive now, a big milestone for any fast-growth tech company.Also, a number of private equity firms reportedly cut Dropbox's valuation recently, with big name investors like T. Rowe Price cutting it by half at one point.Dropbox has raised over $600 million in private funding during the most robust VC investment period of the past decade. Now in the faceof one of the slowest tech IPO markets ever, Dropbox will get to prove everyone wrong and live up to its hype if it pullsoff asuccessful public offering.SEE ALSO:Dropbox cut a bunch of perks and told employees to save more as Silicon Valley startups brace for the coldJoin the conversation about this storyNOW WATCH: Scientists just collected a mysterious 'purple orb' at the bottom of the ocean, but no one could anticipate what happened next
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