Sweden's Truecaller names new chairman ahead of potential IPO

By Supantha Mukherjee

BENGALURU (Reuters) - Swedish mobile phone directory and caller identification service Truecaller on Thursday named Bing Gordon, a partner at venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, as the new chairman, replacing Nami Zarringhalam.

Zarringhalam, who co-founded Truecaller with Alan Mamedi in 2009, will remain a member of the company's board as well as its chief strategy officer.

Truecaller, which had raised money from Sequoia, Atomico and Kleiner Perkins, is expected to go public soon, joining a list of other Swedish companies such as Klarna and Trustly that are looking to tap the public markets.

Gordon said the company would meet its goal to be IPO ready by the end of this year.

"An IPO listing is like getting a college degree, your parents think it's done ... but actually it's just the beginning," Gordon said in an interview. "This is a time where Alan and Nami would have to provide their best leadership."

Gordon, former chief creative officer at Electronic Arts and currently a special advisor to the board of Amazon, was involved in companies such as Duolingo when they listed on the bourses.

Both Gordon and Zarringhalam declined to comment on the timeline of a potential IPO and which exchange Truecaller would list.

Sources had earlier told Reuters that the company was aiming to list in either Sweden or the United States and was looking for a valuation of more than $1 billion.

The company, which has been profitable, has about 280 million monthly active users and counts India as its biggest market. It earns its revenue from advertising and subscription services.

(Reporting by Supantha Mukherjee; Editing by Stephen Coates)