Chinese social networking site Renren.com is preparing an IPO of about USD 500 million this year in the US, reports Bloomberg citing three people with knowledge of the plan. The banks handling the IPO are Morgan Stanley, Deutsche Bank and Credit Suisse Group, and the offering could come by June. The site could use the IPO proceeds to woo more visitors. Renren's public-relations manager Lillian Wang in Beijing did not immediately return calls seeking comment. Morgan Stanley's spokesman Pen Pendleton declined to comment, as did Credit Suisse's Duncan King. Deutsche Bank's Scott Helfman did not respond to a request for comment. Japanese operator Softbank is the biggest shareholder in Beijing-based Renren, with a stake of about 40 percent.
