Identity theft cases have been the most reported consumer complaint in the United States for the past 12 years, LifeLock said in its IPO filing, citing FTC data.Getty Images/iStockphoto
LifeLock Inc., which provides identity theft and fraud protection services, filed with U.S. regulators for an initial public offering that values the company at as much as $960-million (U.S.).
The company said it expects to raise $164.9-million from the sale of 15.7 million shares at between $9.50 and $11.50 each.
LifeLock said it plans to sell 15.5 million of the 15.7 million shares offered in the IPO.
Helped by a spurt in identity theft crimes, the company's subscriber base has risen to 2.3 million paying members. Typically, users pay anything between $10 and $25 a month for its services that include monitoring new account openings and credit-related applications.
Identity theft cases have been the most reported consumer complaint in the United States for the past 12 years, the company said in its IPO filing, citing U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) data.
The number of cases of identity theft increased by 13 per cent in 2011 and more than 11.6 million adults became victims of identity fraud in the United States, according to a report by Javelin Strategy & Research that is quoted in the filing.
The Tempe, Ariz.-based company was in the news two years ago for a marketing campaign in which chief executive officer Todd Davis displayed his social security number on billboards and the company's website to demonstrate his confidence in the service.
According to some reports, Mr. Davis was a victim of multiple identity thefts following the ad campaign. The company has since paid a $12-million fine levied by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for deceptive advertising.
LifeLock, which hired former TPG Capital adviser and Yahoo Inc. executive Hilary Schneider as president earlier this month, plans to use about $62.6-million of the proceeds to repay debt related to its acquisition of ID Analytics.
It bought the risk and identification management service in March, 2012, to strengthen its market position and raised over $100-million in debt for the deal.
The company posted profit of $11.6-million on revenue of $125.5-million for the six months ended June 30.
LifeLock, backed by private equity firms Bessemer Venture Partners and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, intends to list its common stock on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol LOCK.
The stock is expected to start trading on Oct. 3, according to an underwriter to the deal. Goldman Sachs, Merrill Lynch and Deutsche Bank Securities are lead underwriters to the offering.