Jumia is going public on the New York Stock Exchange despite persistent financial losses

Jumia files to float Initial Public Offering (IPO) on the New York Stock Exchange.
The e-commerce did not state offering timeline or share price.
The e-commerce firm says it had accumulated losses of €862.0 million in the last three years.

Jumia, Africa’s largest e-commerce platform, has filed for approval from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to float Initial Public Offering (IPO) on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE).

The fillings seen by Business Insider Sub-Saharan Africa by Pulse on Tuesday confirmed news reports that the African unicorn company is going public.

Jumia did not state the timeline and share price but a report by Bloomberg last month placed its market value at $1.5 billion.

The public offering will give one of its largest shareholders, MTN Group Ltd. the opportunity to sellabout $600 million shares to clear its debt.

Some analysts believed the listing of Jumia shares on the New York bourse may be a good move for the company but not a good appetite for investors considering the company's persistent financial losses in its core markets.

In its three-year operating periods, Jumia incurred a loss for the year of €165.4 million in 2017 and a loss for the year of €170.4 million in 2018.

As of December 31, 2018, the e-commerce firm said it had accumulated losses of €862.0 million.