Facebook Plotting an IPO?

The business press has had few occasions to talk about IPOs lately, but today we get two juicy speculative stories about possible flotations. The first comes courtesy of the Wall Street Journal reporting that Facebook has established a dual-class stock structure, "a move that helps lay the groundwork for an eventual IPO." The Journal notes it's a move ripped from the pages of Google's playbook before it went public. The aim is to increase the voting power of 25-year-old CEO Mark Zuckerberg and some existing shareholders, a particularly astute move should the company decide to sell a chunk of the company to the public in the form of an IPO. Facebook PRs insist, though, that there are "no plans at this time" to go public and that the decision to consolidate power at the top is a long-term business decision. Still, the tech and business press cannot help but speculate on the what-if scenarios. The Financial Times, however, dumps some cold water on the plan, noting that such a stock structure puts rank-and-file shareholders at a disadvantage. "Dual-class stock is an anathema to institutional investors," Charles Elson, professor of corporate governance at the University of Delaware, told the FT. "Ultimately, shareholders lose. If something were to go wrong, there’s absolutely nothing they can do about it."

Sticking with the IPO rumor (or should we say "rumour") mill, Britain's BBC may be plotting a stock flotation for its commercial arm, BBC Worldwide, the FT reports, "in response to pressure from the government and commercial rivals to dilute its media market power." As the FT details, BBC Worldwide operates 23 television channels in more than 100 countries and is the purveyor of BBC branded magazines, Lonely Planet travel guides, merchandise, and TV program formats that generated revenues of £1 billion ($1.66 billion) in 2008-09 and an operating profit of £112 million.

Saab lovers, your favorite auto is in danger of being run off the road for good. Swedish car maker Koenigsegg Group AB backed out of a deal yesterday to buy General Motors' Saab stake, citing last-minute funding difficulties. "It was the third time in less than two months that a sale of a G.M. brand has been called off, reflecting the difficulty of selling under-performing divisions in the midst of a global sales slump," The New York Times writes, adding that GM's board has no more than a week to decide what to do with Saab. The options are limited for GM and Saab, the WSJ reports. "Many industry observers say the emergence of another buyer for the money-losing company is unlikely amid the car business's historic downturn. Still, Saab on Tuesday received at least one expression of interest from a potential purchaser," the newspaper writes, citing a "person familiar with the matter."

AIG CEO Robert Benmosche is staying put. Early this month he told board members of the mammoth company that he "might quit after expressing frustrations about government-imposed pay curbs on AIG's top executives," but now he's had a civic change of heart, the WSJ writes. Benmosche "is committed to leading this company as CEO until the job is done," AIG Chairman Harvey Golub said. As a reward for his commitment, AIG will pay Benmosche about $7 million this year in a mix of salary and stock, Reuters writes.

Let's revisit the listing wreck known as Galleon now for news that federal investigators had suspected dodgy dealings in another part of the Raj Rajaratnam family. The WSJ reports that even before the feds began wiretapping the Galleon boss, "they were already interviewing him about another topic of interest: a hedge fund run by his brother, Rengan." The brother's fund, Sedna, was the target of a Securities and Exchange Commission audit that grew into an insider-trading investigation. Rengan was never charged with any wrongdoing but the investigation later enveloped Galleon.

Zhu Zhu Pets are this year's must-have toy, a robotic hamster that doesn't "poop, die or stink" and, crucially, is priced at less than $10, a perfect combo in these more austere times. Good luck finding one, though. Sean McGowan, the well-known toy industry analyst whose name will no doubt appear in scores of stories over the next few weeks, says the company behind Zhu Zhu Pets, Cepia LLC, has a hit on its hands with real staying power. McGowan projects Zhu Zhu Pets sales to top $70 million this year and $300 million in 2010, Saint Louis Business Journal reports.