Basically there are three reasons to IPO, one you are &quot;forced&quot; into it because the number of individual investors has crossed a predefined threshold of 499, second you are scaling the business and this gives you access to the public markets for capital, or third you are running low on cash on hand and nobody is willing to lead a new round with your current structure.<p>Given the wailing and gnashing of teeth this time last year [1] when Square raised $150M on a $6B valuation, it is entirely possible this is their last change to raise capital. If it doesn&#x27;t work, and they can&#x27;t cross the line into operationally cash flow positive they will become one of the larger unicorns to die this season. I really hope it isn&#x27;t the case because I love their product and their service, but the S-1 doesn&#x27;t paint a picture of hope. Doing some back of the envelope calculations I can&#x27;t see any scale where they are profitable given their current fee structure.<p>[1] <a href="http:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.theverge.com&#x2F;2014&#x2F;10&#x2F;6&#x2F;6918211&#x2F;square-funding-singapore-struggle-valuation" rel="nofollow">http:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.theverge.com&#x2F;2014&#x2F;10&#x2F;6&#x2F;6918211&#x2F;square-funding-sin...</a>