Move over FANG! There may be another acronym on investors lips in the New Year. Rob Cox, the global editor at Reuters Breakingviews, says Spotify, Lyft, Airbnb, and WeWork - aka SLAW - will be the next generation of disruptive companies to watch. “We think they’re going to be a great way to play a whole bunch of different ways that we think about working, that’s WeWork; the way we think about playing, Spotify, and the way we get around the world and have fun, whether it’s Airbnb when we travel or of course Lyft,” he said. These start-ups, all of which are candidates to tap the public markets in 2018, are shooting to change more than the way people consume products, though. Spotify, for example, is reportedly looking to bypass the traditional IPO process entirely, eschewing underwriters, and list its shares directly on the New York Stock Exchange. Cox says that would be a big blow to bankers. “They’re going to lose out because this deal is going to go straight to market,” he said. “They are not going to underwrite the IPO, so they’re not going to get the 7 percent [fee] on the deal.” Lyft meanwhile, which just hired a new vice president of investor relations, would be the first time investors get an opportunity to buy into transportation as a service -- an opportunity, Cox says, is disruptive in its own right. For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/the-tech-ipos-to-watch-in-2018).
