Due to coronavirus pandemic, Airbnb sales fall to a half worldwide. Hardly anyone can travel to other countries. And this affects San Francisco based startup in a very bad way.
According to the analysis company, Airdna, there is a huge drop in sales between mid-February and mid-March in Europe.
The hosts receive most of the revenue on the platform and Airbnb takes a fee usually between 14-20%. Also travel is hardly possible anymore. Since many countries have stopped flights to certain locations for touristic trips, and even if there is no flight ban, people are scared to go to an airport or even take a cab to the airport. For example, many European countries have closed their borders within the EU. Citizens of countries outside the EU are no longer allowed to enter EU countries.
In Germany, Airbnb sales in the week from Sunday, February 16 were €31 million, and from Sunday, March 15, it was only €16 million. The most important market for Airbnb in Europe, France, seen its numbers fall from 120 to 65 million euros. In Italy, sales decreased from 58 to 31 million euros, in Spain from 59 to 33 million euros.
With an investor valuation of around $35 billion, Airbnb is one of the most valuable startups in the world. The company is planning to go public this year.
The San Francisco-based company has reported losses of hundreds of millions of dollars this year, according to the Wall Street Journal. An Airbnb spokesman said the company has “$4 billion in liquidity” and is focusing with the community to weather the crisis. Airbnb, according to the report, is considering raising capital from new investors. The company then will have to lower its own valuation in the process.
