2025's Biggest Tech IPO: Investors Rush for Figma's Upcoming Listing

The tech IPO market in 2025 is showing signs of recovery, with investors keenly interested in high-growth, high-potential SaaS stocks. Silicon Valley design software giant Figma, ticker symbol $FIG, is set to officially list on the NYSE on July 31 (Thursday). The IPO is co-managed by top-tier investment banks, including Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs, Allen & Company, and JPMorgan Chase, making it one of the most anticipated tech IPOs of the year.

On Wednesday, Figma, the American design software developer, priced its IPO at $33 per share, exceeding the expected range of $30-$32. The company aims to raise $1.2 billion, achieving a valuation of $19.3 billion. Investor enthusiasm is extremely high, with the offering oversubscribed more than 30 times, highlighting strong confidence in Figma's growth potential.

The funds raised through this IPO will be primarily allocated to three key areas:

1. Increasing investment in AI research and development, including proprietary model training and computational infrastructure.

2. Exploring strategic acquisition opportunities, targeting low-code development platforms or innovative AI startups to accelerate product integration and technology upgrades.

3. Partially repaying existing debt to optimize capital structure and solidify its leading position in the design collaboration ecosystem.

Figma has adopted an unusual pricing strategy for this IPO, requiring investors to submit limit orders instead of traditional market orders to achieve more precise pricing in the market. This "auction-style IPO" method was previously employed by popular companies such as DoorDash and Airbnb during the pandemic. As the tech IPO market revives, Figma's choice to employ this mechanism reflects the growing demand for high-quality tech stocks.

Despite the attention surrounding Figma's listing, its current valuation of $19.3 billion is slightly lower than Adobe's $20 billion acquisition offer in 2022. Adobe's high bid indicates that Figma poses a significant strategic threat to Adobe's core business. Adobe's own UI/UX design tool, XD, has underperformed in areas such as real-time collaboration, component systems, development delivery efficiency, and ecosystem activity compared to Figma.

What Makes Figma a Hot Design Software Unicorn in Silicon Valley?

Founded in 2012, Figma is a cloud-based collaborative design platform that has revolutionized the traditional design tool paradigm. It pioneered a "web-first" architecture, enabling users to access and use the platform directly through a browser without the need to install local software. Additionally, Figma supports real-time collaborative editing by default, enabling efficient interaction among design teams. The platform also fosters an active user community, encouraging the sharing of resources and creative exchanges. These three features constitute Figma's distinct competitive advantage over traditional desktop software giants like Adobe.

As an end-to-end product design and development collaboration platform, Figma offers a comprehensive toolchain covering every stage from ideation to product launch. Teams can use FigJam (an online collaboration whiteboard) and Figma Slides (a presentation tool) for brainstorming and decision-making. Designers utilize Figma Design (core design tool) and Figma Draw (vector drawing tool) to transform ideas into visual interfaces. Developers can directly view design specifications and generate code through the Dev Mode feature, enhancing delivery efficiency. Project outcomes can be quickly turned into responsive websites using Figma Sites, and marketing content can be created with Figma Buzz. The platform deeply integrates AI technology, such as Figma Make, which automatically generates interactive prototypes, further accelerating the design process. This suite of functions positions Figma as an integrated collaboration hub connecting product, design, and development teams, enabling seamless coordination from concept creation to design development and launch promotion.

Figma's rapid growth is fueled by its broad and high-quality customer base. As of March 2025, the platform boasts over 13 million monthly active users, with professional designers comprising only about one-third, while 67% are non-designers (such as product managers and developers). This ratio highlights Figma's deep penetration and cross-departmental collaboration value among product, engineering, and marketing teams. Notably, about 85% of users are from international markets outside the U.S., yet overseas revenue contribution stands at 53%, indicating significant growth potential in paid conversion and commercial monetization among international users.

On the enterprise client front, Figma has attracted approximately 450,000 registered businesses using its services, with large clients contributing over $100,000 annually, reaching 1,031, a 47% increase from the previous year. The net dollar retention rate (NDR) is 132%, demonstrating strong demand and customer loyalty in the high-end enterprise market. Its flagship clients span various industries, including tech leaders like Netflix, Inc.(NFLX.US) and Stripe, education platforms like Duolingo, Inc.(DUOL.US), and Latin American e-commerce giant Mercado Libre.

Figma's Core Investment Value Analysis and IPO Outlook

Figma demonstrates exceptional financial fundamentals, especially in a SaaS industry environment where overall growth is slowing. In the 2024 fiscal year, the company reported revenue of $749 million, a 48% increase year-over-year. In the first quarter of 2025, revenue reached $228 million, growing by 46%, significantly above the industry average.

Notably, this high growth is not driven by capital subsidies or aggressive investments but is based on a proven sustainable business model. Figma's non-GAAP operating profit margin stands at 18%, and its operating cash flow margin is 28%, both far exceeding the SaaS industry average of around 18%, showcasing strong profitability and operational efficiency.

In terms of profitability, Figma's Q1 gross margin is an impressive 91%, with revenue growing 46% to $228.2 million and an operating profit margin of 17%. This far surpasses the SaaS "Rule of 40" benchmark, which suggests that the sum of revenue growth rate and profit margin should be at least 40%, indicating that the company maintains excellent profitability while achieving rapid growth.

Although Figma incurred losses in 2024 due to $751 million in AI research and development investments, it achieved a net profit of $44.9 million in Q1 2025, tripling from $13.5 million in Q1 2024. Strategically, its net dollar retention rate of 132% underscores high customer product stickiness and expanding usage depth.

Furthermore, Figma is focused on deeply integrating AI technology into its product line, aiming to become the design operating system of the AI era and establish a second growth curve. The word "AI" is mentioned 150 times in its prospectus, highlighting the company's commitment to this strategic direction.

Specifically, Figma Make generates interactive prototypes from text prompts, Figma Draw uses AI to optimize vector graphics, and Figma Buzz can create marketing materials in bulk, significantly lowering the barriers to design work.

Thanks to the introduction of AI features, enterprise clients show a marked increase in upgrade intentions, with renewal rates for AI tool users 15% higher than non-users, and the upgrade to enterprise versions rising by 20%. If Figma can achieve a 10%-15% increase in average customer spend through its AI features, it could unlock a new market opportunity valued at approximately $20 billion.

In terms of valuation, with an offering price at 33$ per share, Figma's corresponding market value is $19.3 billion, with a price-to-sales (P/S) ratio of 22.9 times. Referencing Adobe's $20 billion acquisition offer, calculated at 487 million shares, this equates to approximately $41.03 per share. Should Figma's AI commercialization exceed expectations, the market may reassess its growth potential and grant a higher valuation premium.

Figma occupies a position of high margin, high growth, and strong synergy in the design tool sector, directly aligning its valuation logic with Adobe's billion-dollar UI/UX business. Despite Canva's strong performance in the consumer market, Figma's penetration in the B2B segment (450,000 enterprise clients) and AI technology barriers result in a significantly higher valuation compared to similar competitors.

Figma stands in the middle ground of growth and profitability within the SaaS industry. Its gross margin (91%) is notably higher than Snowflake(SNOW.US)'s (78%) and monday.com Ltd.(MNDY.US)'s (80%), though its growth rate (46%) is slightly lower than Snowflake's (58%). This combination places its valuation between the two, adhering to the premium logic of "high-margin SaaS."

The Figma Effect: Which AI Software Stocks Will Soar?

Figma's IPO is generating significant buzz, akin to the market excitement surrounding unicorn company Circle earlier this year. With a vast market size and backing from prominent investment firms, Figma has captured widespread attention. Since its founding in 2012, Figma has completed eight rounds of financing, with participation from renowned Silicon Valley venture capital firms such as Coatue, Sequoia, A16Z, and Kleiner Perkins.

Investors have high hopes for Figma's post-IPO performance, anticipating it to potentially double like Circle. Here are some AI software stocks worth watching for investors:

• AI + Multi-field

AI + Data 

• AI + Security

• AI + Enterprise Services

• AI + Education

• AI + Advertising

• AI + Finance

• AI + Healthcare

• AI + Voice

• AI + Creativity