LinkedIn, Not Facebook, Prepares for IPO

That other social network, LinkedIn, has recently enlisted three investment banks -- Bank of America, J.P. Morgan and Morgan Stanley -- to serve as advisors and underwriters on its proposed initial public offering, expected to go to market in the third quarter 2011.

Of course, glaringly missing from the list of LinkedIn advisors is Facebook's new bunkmate, Goldman Sachs, which must've lost the beauty contest for the business outright, been excluded for its close relationship with Zuckerberg and (private) Co., or been knocked out of the running for its less than favorable reputation on Main Street as of late.

There is also another possible reason why Goldman's name is not on the list: it's already satisfied with its LinkedIn position.

To explain: Although LinkedIn has been valued at a modest $2.2 billion (versus the $50 billion valuation that Facebook has recently been given), the firm's investors, including several venture capital and private equity firms, stand to make an extremely healthy return on their bets. The firms that have invested in various rounds of LinkedIn financing include Sequoia Capital, Greylock Partners, Bessemer Venture Capital Ventures, SAP Ventures, the McGraw Hill Companies, and none other than the private equity unit of Goldman Sachs.

Which begs the question: Is there anything Goldman doesn't have its tentacles wrapped around?

(DealBook)