In a rare move, Figma’s IPO favors secondary share sales—letting insiders, including Dylan Field and top VCs, capitalize on strong market demand
Figma’s IPO: A Windfall for Insiders
Figma’s upcoming IPO is shaping up to be the biggest public tech debut of 2025, and it’s making waves for an unusual reason: insiders are selling more shares than the company itself.
- Figma will offer 12.5 million new shares, while existing shareholders are cashing out nearly 24.7 million.
- If demand is strong, they could sell 5.5 million more, bringing the secondary sale total to over 30 million shares.
- This approach suggests massive investor interest—and a limited supply of new shares to meet that demand.
Dylan Field: $60M+ Payday, but Control Intact
Figma co-founder and CEO Dylan Field is selling 2.35 million shares, which could net him over $62 million at the IPO’s midpoint price of $26.50 per share.
- That number could rise further if the IPO prices above the range of $25–$28.
- Even after cashing out, Field will retain 74% of the company’s voting rights, thanks to supervoting Class B shares.
- He also controls the voting power of co-founder Evan Wallace’s shares, reinforcing his long-term control of the company.
Venture Giants Take Partial Liquidity
Figma’s top investors are also taking this IPO as an opportunity to return capital:
- Index Ventures, Greylock, Sequoia, and Kleiner Perkins will each sell between 1.7 million and 3.3 million shares.
- These firms are still holding onto the majority of their stakes, signaling long-term belief in Figma’s upside.
- The move is also reflective of a liquidity-hungry VC ecosystem, where even a partial exit is meaningful amid a slow IPO market.
A Strategic Secondary Offering
This IPO structure—favoring secondary over primary shares—is relatively rare.
- Figma will not receive proceeds from the shares sold by insiders.
- However, if the IPO prices above its expected range, all parties stand to benefit, and Figma could still raise over $1.5 billion.
- IPO experts suggest this setup may have been necessary to meet investor demand, given the relatively small number of new shares being issued.
Looking Ahead: A Bellwether Tech IPO
Figma’s public debut is expected as early as next week, and strong investor enthusiasm could push it to price above the initial range.
- That would make Figma the largest tech IPO of the year so far, and possibly a confidence signal for late-stage startups waiting to go public.
- While insiders are cashing out, most are keeping significant stakes, which speaks to continued faith in Figma’s long-term trajectory.
