Could Market Volatility Hurt Tech IPOs?

The recent extreme dips and yaws of stock markets around the world could put a damper on plans by some tech startups to potentially go public.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average dipped more than 1,000 points in the first minutes of the market opening on Monday morning, recovering a little bit in the afternoon, with losses hovering around 450 points. The NASDAQ fell more than 400 points in the morning, pulling back to a 135 point loss by the afternoon. Wall Street followed European and Asian markets, which had already fallen, largely on concerns about the continued health of the Chinese economy. (See Money Problems.)

If such market volatility continues, it could put a damper on some IPO plans going forward.

So which companies have been talking about an initial public offering?

Independent mobile virtual network operator FreedomPop has been hinting that an IPO is one option for the fast-growing service provider, without directly saying it. The company's CEO said in June that the company had refused several buyout options and will revisit its "exit options" in 12 to 24 months. (See FreedomPop Grabs $30M More in Funding.)

Casa Systems Inc. has made no secret of its plans to IPO. The CEO of the company, Jerry Guo, told us about its offering plan in June, without talking about timing. (See Casa Systems Lines Up an IPO.)

Spanish operator Euskaltel has also said that it is considering an IPO. (See Euskaltel IPO Could Support M&A, 4G Rollout.)

Caribbean operator DigiCell has already filed initial IPO plans with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) . (See Digicel Plans IPO to Fuel Growth.)

For more on mobile, visit the dedicated mobile section here on Light Reading.

Light Reading has heard, meanwhile, that both mobile virtualization startup Affirmed Networks Inc. and enterprise small cell specialist SpiderCloud Wireless are considering the possibility of IPOs. (See SpiderCloud Spins Web of Small Cell Partners .)

The tech IPO pipeline appeared to be getting much healthier through 2015 and going into 2016. As past stock market crashes have shown though, a weak market can put a damper on IPO plans.

If the huge dips in the Dow are not simply a correction to a stock market that has been on a roll over the last four years, however, IPOs may be the least of our worries. Investors are certainly concerned: the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE) Volatility Index, otherwise known as the "investor fear gauge," concerning stock market volatility over the next 30 days, is up nearly 50% today.

— Dan Jones, Mobile Editor, Light Reading