(Reuters) - Etsy Inc's initial public offering has been priced at $16 per share, a market source told Reuters, valuing the online retailer of handmade goods and craft supplies at about $1.78 billion (1.20 billion pounds).
The New York-based company's IPO raised about $266.66 million at that price, the top end of its expected range of $14-$16 per share.
Etsy is offering 13.33 million shares, while 3.33 million shares are being sold by shareholders, including venture capital firm Accel Partners.
The company, which has 29 million items listed on its website, charges a 20-cent listing fee for each item and a 3.5 percent fee for each completed sale.
Etsy, which had 1.4 million active sellers and 19.8 million active buyers as of December, also earns from its advertising platform, payment processing and shipping labels.
Besides Accel Partners, the company's major investors include Index Ventures, Union Square Ventures and investment firm Tiger Global Management.
Accel Partners' stake fell to 22.4 percent from 27 percent after the offering, while Union Square's stake dropped to 12.6 percent from 15.2 percent.
Founded in 2005 by Robert Kalin, Etsy has grown from a website selling just wooden goods to an online community where crafters and artists offer handmade and vintage goods.
The company, led by former Yahoo Inc executive Chad Dickerson, counts Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN), eBay Inc (NASDAQ:EBAY) and Alibaba (NYSE:BABA) Group Holding Ltd among its larger rivals.
Etsy's net loss widened to $15.24 million in 2014 from $796,000 a year earlier. Revenue rose 56.4 percent to $195.59 million.
Shares of Etsy are expected to start trading under the symbol "ETSY" on Thursday on the Nasdaq.
Goldman Sachs & Co (NYSE:GS), Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) and Allen & Co LLC are underwriting the IPO.