Even in a region famous for cranking out business marvels, Facebook is something to behold. Almost eight years to the day after launching in a Harvard dorm room, the Menlo Park social networking giant on Wednesday took the wraps off a financial rocket that reached all but the loftiest of expectations surrounding the company.
In its eagerly awaited initial public offering filing, Facebook said its annual revenue last year totalled $US3.7 billion ($A3.47 billion) as profits hit $US1 billion. About 845 million people around the world check into the site at least monthly - and nearly 500 million do so daily - giving Facebook the kind of global reach usually associated with a century-old brand like Coca-Cola.
''This is a unique and extraordinary company,'' said Mark Siegel, managing director at venture capital firm Menlo Ventures, which does not have a stake in the company. ''I don't know that you can draw a whole lot of parallels.''
All of which is why the $US5 billion offering, which several reports say could rise to $US10 billion, is the most highly anticipated tech offer since Google. It could mint hundreds of millionaires, make boatloads of rich VCs a whole lot richer and reignite market fascination with dot-com offerings in the wake of some high-profile duds.
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