This Day in History: , Facebook Raises $16 Billion in Largest Tech IPO in U.S. History.
May 18, 2012.
The company raised $16 billion at its initial public offering (IPO).
At the time, Facebook's IPO was the largest of any tech company in U.S. history.
It was the third largest of any company.
With 900 million users worldwide, the social network was valued at $104 billion.
Initially founded as a social network for Harvard students in 2004, Facebook was created by Mark Zuckerberg and three other classmates.
By 2008, the platform had become so popular that it was used by presidential candidate Barack Obama.
It was considered essential in helping him win the White House.
At the close of trading, Facebook shares were worth just slightly more than the $38 IPO price at $38.23