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10 largest U.S. IPOs These initial public offerings took Wall Street by storm as they raked in billions of dollars. As Facebook files IPO paperwork, here’s a look at the top IPOs in U.S. history.
Facebook
The social-networking firm has not yet filed to go public, but analysts expect it could raise $10 billion, making it one of the biggest IPOs in history.
Tony Avelar
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Bloomberg
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No. 10: UPS
After 92 years as a private company, UPS raised $5.47 billion in its IPO on Nov. 9, 1999. The Washington Post reported at the time, "The mega-deal, which made millionaires of UPS managers and enriched some rank-and-file employees, demonstrates how dot-com wealth is spilling into the bricks-and-mortar world."
Tim Boyle
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Bloomberg
No. 9: Swisscom
The previously government-owned telecommunication company raised $5.58 billion in its IPO on Oct. 4, 1998. Despite the IPO, MarketWatch reported that "the Swiss government will still own about 70 percent of the telecommunication company after the offering."
Adrian Moser
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Bloomberg News
No. 8: Telstra
The Australian communications company raised $5.65 billion in its U.S. IPO on Nov. 17, 1997.
Carla Gottgens
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Bloomberg
No. 7: France Telecom
The telecom giant raised $7.29 billion in its IPO on Oct. 17, 1997. The Washington Post reported at the time, "In New York, France Telecom's entry onto the New York Stock Exchange was celebrated with croissants, cancan dancers and accordion players." Here, a customer shops for a phone at a France Telecom retail outlt in Paris.
Antoine Antoniol
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Bloomberg
No. 6: Kraft Foods
The company behind products such as boxed macaroni and cheese, Nabisco cookies, and Post cereals raised $8.68 billion in its IPO on June 12, 2001. The Washington Post reported that the success of Kraft's IPO could be partly attributable to the fact that food sales are "relatively recession-resistant" and that Kraft is much larger in size than many of its competitors.
David Paul Morris
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Bloomberg
No. 5: AT&T Wireless
The telecom firm raised $10.62 billion in its IPO on April 26, 2000. At the time, it was the largest initial public offering in history. The success, The Washington Post reported at the time, "underscored a growing fascination with the promises of wireless and AT&T's continued transformation into a leading player in mobile communications and the Internet."
Mark Lennihan
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AP
No. 4. Deutsche Telekom
Europe's largest phone company raised $13 billion in its U.S. IPO on Nov. 17, 1996. At the time, Bloomberg News reported, "The IPO will free up cash for Deutsche Telekom to expand internationally and defend its German telephone monopoly from such battle-hardened telephone providers as AT&T Corp. and British Telecommunications PLC, analysts and investors said." Here, Rene Obermann, the firm's chief executive, is shown at a news conference in Bonn, Germany.
Hannelore Foerster
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Bloomberg
No. 3: General Motors
After receiving a government bailout in 2009, the automaker bounced back with an IPO on Nov. 17, 2010, in which it raised $15.77 billion. The Post reported at the time that the IPO was "a reflection of the renewed confidence in a company that just a year ago, staggered by debt and years of declining market share, slouched toward financial ruin." Pictured here is GM's Chevrolet Tru 140S concept vehicle at the 2012 Detroit Auto Show.
Andrew Harrer
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Bloomberg
No. 2: Enel
The Italian utility company raised $16.45 billion in its U.S. IPO on Nov. 1, 1999.
Alessandra Benedetti
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Bloomberg
No. 1: Visa
The credit card company holds the record for all-time largest U.S. IPO. Visa raised $17.86 billion on March 18, 2008. Shares of Visa rocketed 28 percent in their first day of trading. Furthermore, the IPO gave a boost to Visa's member banks including Bank of America, J.P. Morgan Chase, HSBC, Capital One and Citigroup.
Andrew Harrer
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Bloomberg
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