Anthropic Files for IPO With Up to $2 Trillion Valuation in Sight: Where to Trade Pre-IPO Exposure

Anthropic has publicly filed for an initial public offering (IPO). This could become one of the biggest stock market listings ever. Meanwhile, crypto traders are using markets linked to the value of the company that develops Claude to place their bets.

The company submitted its S-1 registration statement on Oct. 26. It plans to list its Class A common stock on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the ticker ANT.

The company has not yet decided how many shares it will offer or how much each share will cost. Its registration statement has also not yet taken effect.

Reports suggest that the company could be valued at $1.5 trillion to $2 trillion.

Before the shares become publicly available, eligible traders can use financial contracts linked to Anthropic's value. However, these contracts do not give traders ownership of the company's future Nasdaq shares.

Anthropic Plans a Huge Stock Market Listing

According to The Wall Street Journal, Anthropic could raise $100 billion or more and begin trading during the week of Nov. 16, according to the report. Both the amount it hopes to raise and the expected date could change. Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley are leading the group of banks managing the IPO.

The reported valuation would be a major increase from the amount Anthropic was valued at in its most recent funding round.

In May, the company announced a $65 billion Series H funding round. At that time, its value after the investment was estimated at $965 billion. Investors included Altimeter Capital, Dragoneer, Greenoaks, and Sequoia Capital.

If Anthropic reaches a $2 trillion valuation, its value would be slightly more than twice its latest private-market valuation. This reflects investors' expectations that businesses will increasingly use AI.

The IPO filing also shows the financial challenges behind the company's rapid growth. Revenue for the first half of the year reached about $16.3 billion, up from $1.2 billion during the same period a year earlier.

Anthropic reported a net loss of $80.7 billion. This included a large accounting charge that did not involve an actual cash payment, caused by changes in the value of certain financing instruments. Its operating loss was much smaller, at $693 million.

These numbers show why it is important to understand the difference between accounting losses and the costs of running the business.

Anthropic's fast revenue growth helps explain why investors may value it so highly. However, the final IPO price will determine how much investors must pay today for the company's expected future success.

Where Can You Trade Anthropic Before the IPO?

Binance Futures offers an ANTHROPICUSDT pre-IPO perpetual contract, which launched on June 2. This contract is settled in USDT, can be traded at any time, and offers leverage of up to 20 times. Access depends on the trader's location and account eligibility.

It is important to understand how Binance calculates the company's implied value. At first, Binance used an estimated total of one billion shares. It warned that the actual number of shares offered in the IPO could be different.

Because of this, the price shown for the contract should not be confused with Anthropic's eventual Nasdaq share price.

Another option is Liquid's ANTH perpetual market. Eligible users can use it to bet on whether Anthropic's reference value will rise or fall.

Liquid says each price point represents $1 billion in the company's implied value. For example, a reading of 1,800 would mean an implied valuation of $1.8 trillion. It does not mean that this is the company's confirmed stock price.

These markets let traders express their views on Anthropic's future value before its public shares begin trading. Their contract names are also different from ANT, the ticker the company plans to use on Nasdaq.

Pre-IPO Perpetual Contracts Do Not Give You ANT Shares

Buying a perpetual contract linked to Anthropic does not guarantee you a place in the IPO. It also does not automatically turn into company shares when Anthropic goes public.

Liquid states that its contract does not give users the right to vote as shareholders, receive shareholder information, or get shares in a future IPO. Instead, the contract gives users price exposure without owning the stock. Any gains or losses are settled through the trading account.

Funding charges, leverage, and market liquidity can have a big effect on returns. A trader might correctly predict that Anthropic's value will rise and still lose money because their position is liquidated or because holding the contract becomes too expensive.

The IPO may also change how these contracts work. Binance says its pre-IPO perpetual contract will change into a standard perpetual contract based on a traditional asset after an exchange announcement.

Traders should therefore check the rules for this change on each platform, as well as how each platform calculates the contract's price.

For now, these markets let traders debate Anthropic's value before the company confirms its final share count, IPO price range, and listing date.

The information in this article is for general information only. It is not financial advice and should not be treated as financial advice. We do not guarantee that the information is complete, reliable, or accurate. All investments involve risk, and past results do not guarantee future results. We recommend speaking with a financial adviser before making any investment decisions.