// Casper slashes the amount it is seeking in its IPO

// The retailer aims to encourage investors into acquiring a stake

// It expects to offer 8.35 million shares between $12 (£9.23) and $13 (£10)

Casper has reportedly slashed the amount it is seeking in its IPO in a bid to encourage investors to buy a stake in its struggling business.

The online mattress-in-a-box retailer said it expected to offer 8.35 million shares between $12 (£9.23) and $13 (£10), down from $17 (£13) to $19 (£14.6) that it originally set out last week, City AM reported.

The new prices would raise $108.6 million (£83 million) and value Casper at $515.2 million (£397 million) – below the $1.1 billion valuation it set out to raise in a private fundraising last year.

READ MORE: 5 Minutes With Constantin Eis, Co-founder & Global MD, Casper

In the first nine months of 2019, Casper saw its sales rise 20 per cent to $312.3 million (£240 million), but losses widened by five per cent to $67.3 million (£52 million).

Casper made its name by selling one “universally comfortable” type of memory-foam mattress.

It now sells three different types of mattresses directly to consumers.

Casper said it will begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday under the symbol “CSPR”.

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