Software firm plans IPO to raise up to $500m

Workday, a maker of software that helps companies manage operations, plans to file for an initial public offering next year that would raise as much as $500 million (Dh1.83 billion), two people with knowledge of the matter said. The company would file its plan in the first half and make its debut in the second half, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the plans aren't public. Workday is likely to hire Allen & Co to help with the sale, which would raise at least $200 million, the people said. Other banks being considered include Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs Group and JPMorgan Chase & Co, one person said. Workday software, which handles tasks like payroll and human resources, is delivered through the internet. The market for such cloud-computing services will surge to $241 billion in 2020 from $40.7 billion this year, according to Forrester Research. Workday follows other debuting business-software companies, including Jive Software, which has risen 25 per cent since its December 12 IPO. Funding round Article continues below Dell Chief Executive Michael Dell joined the ranks of Workday investors in a recent round of funding, two people with knowledge of the matter said. Workday raised $100 million, the people said, after initially announcing financing of $85 million on October 24. Christine Cefalo, a spokeswoman for California-based Workday, didn't immediately return a request for comment. Allen & Co served as financial adviser in the recent funding round, which was led by new investors, including T. Rowe Price Group, Morgan Stanley Investment Management, Janus Capital Group and Bezos Expeditions, the personal investment company of Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos. Workday is recruiting a chief financial officer who can help navigate the IPO process and assist in hiring bankers, one person said, without identifying candidates. As of October, Workday had more than 230 customers, including Kimberly-Clark, which recently started to deploy the software to manage 57,000 workers in 60 countries.