Figma’s IPO + how you can tell if a company will IPO
Figma has IPO’d last week! This is a huge milestone, not just for Figma, but for the entire design community.
Remember the days of endless file versions and emailing "Final_V2_FINAL_v13" attachments? Figma changed all that with a collaborative design platform.
Also, Please take a few mins to fill out this anonymous survey for Design Buddies to help us create things that would help you out. 5 random people will be selected to win 2 months of LinkedIn Premium! (if you choose to enter your email) by Aug 8: https://forms.gle/fY7qd8uZk54xjfVJ6
Today, Figma is so much more than just a design tool. It's become the go-to platform for entire product development teams. With over 13 million monthly active users (and two-thirds of them being non-designers!), Figma is truly where ideas turn into world-class digital products. In fact, 95% of the Fortune 500 and 78% of the Forbes Global 2000 were using Figma as of March 2025 (according to their S1)
What is an IPO?
An Initial Public Offering (IPO) is when a private company decides to sell shares of itself to the public for the first time. Think of it as a company's graduation from being privately owned to becoming publicly traded on stock exchanges like NASDAQ or NYSE.
Before an IPO, a company is owned by founders, employees, and private investors. After an IPO, anyone can buy a piece of the company by purchasing shares.
Here’s our initial reaction to Figma’s IPO on the first day:
Figma’s story
The Setup (2012-2022)
Dylan Field and Evan Wallace founded Figma in 2012
The company raised multiple funding rounds, growing from a scrappy startup to a what we know Figma as today
By 2021, Figma was valued at $10 billion in private markets
Employees held stock options that could potentially be worth millions
Almost IPO (2022)
In 2022, industry watchers expected Figma to go public soon
The company had strong revenue growth, a loyal user base, and clear market dominance (+ Adobe XD even shut down)
Many Figma employees were likely preparing for a life-changing IPO windfall
The failed Adobe acquisition (2022)
Instead of going public, Adobe announced it would acquire Figma for $20 billion in September 2022
This meant no public IPO, but potentially even bigger payouts for employees with stock options
However, regulatory concerns led to the deal being abandoned in December 2023 (European regulations preventing Adobe for having a monopoly in the design space)
Figma had a $1 billion termination fee
What Happened Next (2024-2025) After the Adobe deal collapsed, Figma took several strategic steps:
In May 2024, Figma conducted a tender offer valued at $12.5 billion, allowing employees and early investors to sell shares
The tender offer raised between $600-900 million with support from over 25 investors, including new backers like Atlassian and Fidelity
In April 2025, Figma confidentially filed for IPO, 16 months after scrapping the Adobe deal
By July 2025, Figma published its IPO prospectus, planning to sell 37 million shares at $33 each, potentially raising $1 billion
How can you tell if a company is going to IPO?
If you work at a company during it’s IPO, you’ll likely get a huge pay day because of the stocks you’d own (equity compensation).
Look at who they are hiring on their jobs page. Key hires include an underwriter, a banker, an accounting firm, an audit firm, various legal counsels, and investor relations
Adding independent board members
Look for mentions of "public company experience required" in job postings
Reaching significant revenue milestones ($100M+ ARR). Companies showing consistent 20%+ year-over-year growth. Review press releases and company blog posts for growth metrics
Companies that have raised Series D+ rounds are often IPO candidates. Look for recent funding rounds at $5B+ valuations. Typically 8+ years old
Follow tech news outlets (TechCrunch, Bloomberg, Reuters) for IPO speculation
During your interview process: Ask about the company's "path to profitability" or "exit strategy" and equity compensation structures
P.S. This newsletter is for educational purposes and shouldn't be considered financial advice. Always consult with financial professionals for investment decisions!
Companies that go public successfully often have strong user research, systematic design processes, and measurable design impact. Focus on building these competencies.
If you're trying to get your first job in UX design and improve your UX and design impact skills, our next CoCreate design project cohort is open!
In 10 weeks:
- You’ll be the designer who ships real products with engineers, PMs, and founders
- You’ll design side by side with a big tech team and big tech coach
- You’ll be the designer who presents to SF’s top founders, hiring managers, and design leads. Gain work experience, and a killer portfolio/resume piece
- Get hired through the cohort, and grow with guidance from alumni who’ve done it before. You'll work on a really good project/team and have a killer portfolio piece
Cohort starts late September 2025, apply today:
Resources
Find out your work personality on this fun quiz by Replit x Notion!! https://tinyurl.com/work-aura
Vibe coding hacks for designers + live demos recording with Replit:
Sharing a founding designer role here! all info: https://superflexteam.notion.site/Founding-Designer-Wonder-23464cd88e458076a81ac6636f0f24be if you'd like a direct referral, please email me grace@designbuddies.community with your resume and portfolio
Events
Design Feedback Friday on Discord (Fri Aug 8, 11 am pacific time (UTC-7): https://lu.ma/xzvnwz0t
Portfolio pitch deck roast on LinkedIn Live (Fri Aug 8, 12 pm pacific time): https://lu.ma/roast-deck
Vibeathon, virtual vibe coding hackathon! Submission due date Aug 31: https://b150-779609.webflow.io/vibeathon
🐰 About CoCreate (Design Buddies/UXGO - we’re the same team)
CoCreate (Design Buddies/UXGO) is a community where you level up your design career. Land jobs, improve your design skills, and make friends. We have resources, events, design challenges, job boards, fun perks, and more.
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