LinkedIn, the network service for professionals, is planning to go public and is reportedly discussing about a possible IPO, said a Reuters report quoting sources.

The report said the company has already selected its financial underwriters and chosen book runners like JP Morgan, Morgan Stanley and Bank of America. An IPO is just one of many tactics that we could consider, a LinkedIn spokesman told Reuters on Wednesday.

News about the possible IPO by LinkedIn has raised speculations in the market as to whether the company is jumping into the IPO race ahead of Facebook to capitalize on a positive mood in the market.

Earlier, investigations by US regulator Securities and Exchanges Commission (SEC) have instigated rumors that the popular social networking site, Facebook, which was on the verge of going public, settled for shareholding pattern. As per the norms, the company has to keep the number of shareholders below 500 to prevent making it a public firm, which Facebook has managed.

It was reported that the SEC believed that the private trade of the limited shareholder's stock have increased Facebook's estimated value by billions of dollars. To avoid investigation by the SEC, there were speculations and rumors that Facebook, with 500 million users, might decide to go public.

LinkedIn, on the other hand, with over 80 million active users, is hoping to attract investors before any such plans by Facebook take shape. The estimated valuation of the IPO is still not known.

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