Analysis
Two of the more closely watched private infrastructure companies are separately exploring public listings, according to reporting from Bloomberg and The Information. Bloomberg reported that Plaid, the fintech network whose APIs connect more than 7,000 apps -- including Venmo, Robinhood and Coinbase -- to consumer bank accounts, is in preliminary discussions with banks about a U.S. IPO. The talks follow Plaid's $8 billion valuation from a February 2026 funding round, a recovery from the $6.1 billion mark it hit in 2025 but still below its 2021 peak of $13.4 billion.
Separately, The Information reported that Verkada, the cloud-based enterprise security company known for cameras and access-control systems, is also talking to banks about a potential offering. Verkada was valued at $5.8 billion in a round led by Alphabet's CapitalG in December 2025, and the company has since crossed $1 billion in annualized bookings -- a milestone many private companies treat as a green light for IPO planning.
“Neither company has filed an S-1, and both remain in the earliest, most reversible stage of the process.”
Neither company has filed an S-1, and both remain in the earliest, most reversible stage of the process. But the fact that two infrastructure-heavy, non-consumer names are testing the market at the same time Jersey Mike's and Reformation are actively pricing this week suggests bankers see room for a broader mix of sectors in the current window, not just mega-cap names like SpaceX or consumer brands.
What to watch: whether either company files a confidential S-1 in the back half of 2026, and whether their eventual pricing echoes the conservative, below-rumor approach Jersey Mike's just took.
