The business arm of Raspberry Pi is preparing to make an initial public offering (IPO) in London. CEO Eben Upton tells Ars that should the IPO happen, it will let Raspberry Pi’s not-for-profit side expand by “at least a factor of 2X.” And while it’s “an understandable thing” that Raspberry Pi enthusiasts could be concerned, “while I’m involved in running the thing, I don’t expect people to see any change in how we do things.”
How can the not-for-profit side of business expand with an IPO? People invest specifically to increase their wealth. How’s this going to happen with a non-profit business?
Surely those shareholders just fucking love Raspberry Pi so damn much that they just have over their cash no questions asked.
You’re forgetting that superannuation, 401k, retirement funds that everyone pays for goes into stocks too.
Technically speaking you could be a shareholder.
In an ideal world, the company can use this to further expand without taking on debt.
What raspberry pi will do though, we shall see. But it’s not always so black and white.