How to Invest in Spotify Before It Goes Public

Many, many years ago, I was able to buy stock in Apple (AAPL) before it went public. Around the time when Apple Computer [that was the original name] was considering going public, I noticed an article in Forbes Magazine which mentioned that many of the shares were owned by a publicly traded closed end fund called the Nautilus Fund.

So I immediately bought some shares of the Nautilus Fund, not being sure of whether the CEF would sells the shares of Apple when it went public or would spin the shares out to the shareholders.

As it turned out, Apple had its initial public offering and the fund gave its shareholders the shares in Apple.

Now there is another hot company that is planning on going public but not through an IPO.

Spotify (SPOT) is a Stokholm, Sweden based music, podcast, and video streaming service with 160 million users, 72 million of which are paying customers.

You may have already heard that the company is expected to begin trading on April 3 on the New York Stock Exchange. This will be a direct listing, which means that no underwriters will be involved.

The reasons that the company is doing this are several, and the company has laid them out in its filing with the SEC for Form FWP 1 Filed Pursuant to Rule 433 under the Securities Act of 1933.

Here is what Spotify said in that document:

Many people have speculated about why Spotify is pursuing a Direct Listing.
We think it is best that you hear directly from us why we think this is the right approach for the people at Spotify.
From where we sit, there are five key reasons.
First, to list without the Company having to sell shares.
Second, to offer liquidity for shareholders.
Third, to provide equal access to all buyers and sellers.
Fourth, to conduct the process with radical transparency.
And fifth, is to enable market-driven price discovery through the New York Stock Exchange.

So can an investor get in before the trading date?

Article continued at WStNN.com. To see the rest of the article, click HERE.