SHANGHAI: Chinese Internet security service provider Qihoo 360 Technology Co plans to raise up to $200 million in an initial public offering in the United States, the company said on Tuesday. The company has applied to list on the New York Stock Exchange and hired UBS Investment Bank and Citigroup as the lead underwriters of the offering, according to a filing with the US securities regulator. Qihoo, established in 2005, said it is China's top provider of Internet and mobile security products as measured by user base with 328 million active monthly users, citing figures from domestic Internet research firm iResearch. Its 360 Safe Browser is the second most popular web browser in China after Microsoft Internet Explorer, with 172 million monthly active users, it quoted iResearch as saying. Qihoo is the latest Chinese Internet start-up to look to the US capital market, where investors are keen to snap up stakes in tech firms based in the world's fastest-growing major economy. China has the world's biggest Internet population with at least 457 million users. Dangdang, China's largest online book retailer, and Youku, a Chinese online video site similar to Youtube, both made strong debuts last year following initial public offerings in the United States. Qihoo, which generates revenue from online advertising and Internet value-added services such as remote technical support to paying customers, said its revenue for 2010 grew to $57.7 million from $32.3 million in 2009. Its net profit more than doubled last year to $8.5 million, compared with $4.2 million in 2009, when it became profitable. Qihoo 360 said it would use the proceeds from the IPO for research and development and technology acquisition, according to the filing.
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