.png)
One of music’s true power players is now a publicly traded company. On September 21 Universal Music Group (UMG) began trading on the Amsterdam Euronext with 60% of the world’s largest music company now available to purchase for retail investors. With a market cap in excess of $40 billion the company is nearly double the size of competitor Warner Music Group who IPO’d earlier this year.
The trend of public offerings of music and entertainment companies comes at a time where the industry has undergone a turbulent year as industry professionals attempt to navigate the covid-19 pandemic while continuing to maximize touring revenue. Undoubtedly UMG’s lofty valuation will drive other competitors to consider going public in favor of increased visibility and capital.
As the world’s largest recorded music company and second largest music publishing company UMG is in a unique position to shape the value of the larger music industry. Despite global uncertainty regarding live events, the music industry has managed to maintain revenue growth as companies adapt to innovative new income sources like NFT’s.
We expect other industry leaders to follow Warner and Universal's lead and venture into the public market in the coming months and years. We’ll continue to monitor the situation and update you on the next company that is planning a market debut.