Steven SparkmanIf you looked at the business press at any point Monday, you probably saw a lot of hype about Alibaba.
FOX BUSINESS: "Why is this so important, this Alibaba deal?"
JIM ROGERS: "It's because Wall Street's going to make a lot of money, and the people who get it on the offering are going to make a lot of money."
CNBC: "What's the biggest argument for being leery of the stock, if you think there is one?"
DAN ROSENSWEIG: "I don't think there is one."
The Chinese e-commerce giant is set to go public on the New York Stock Exchange Friday, and the run-up to its IPO is dominating business news.
It's no surprise. Everything about the company is huge. Its revenue jumped 46 percent over the past year to $2.5 billion, and investors see plenty of room for more growth.
"In fact, I believe, not China but Alibaba in the year 2015 will be the largest retail platform in the world. Yes, larger than Walmart." (Video via Tompkins International)
Demand for the stock has been so ravenous, the company filed paperwork Monday to make its IPO even bigger, raising its share price.
That means the company Chinese entrepreneur Jack Ma started in his apartment in the '90s could become the largest IPO in U.S. history — bigger than Visa's $17.9 billion in 2008 and dwarfing Facebook's $16 billion in 2012.
In fact, it may even rival the Agricultural Bank of China's $22.1 billion for the title of largest IPO in the world.
And believe it or not, some analysts say the company is playing it safe.
Bloomberg's Paul Sweeney: "They're also sitting back and saying 'We need to be cautious because the last thing we want to happen here is a Facebook-type IPO debacle.' ... They could, in fact, go higher."
Expect to hear a lot more about Alibaba over the next few days. Jack Ma is currently on a global "road show," speaking to investors around the world trying to build even more excitement for the stock.
This video includes images from Getty Images.
