Airbnb valuation reaches $1 billion mark

Following a $112 million round of financing, three-year-old global accommodations network startup Airbnb's business valuation has exceeded $1 billion, Forbes reports. Although the company's founders have traditionally been focused on tapping into the vacation rental market in the United States, the latest funding will be put towards expanding Airbnb globally, according to Jeff Jordan of venture capital firm Andreessen-Horowitz, which led the financing. Currently, Airbnb is headquartered in San Francisco, with a European office in Hamburg, Germany. The company - which allows property owners to rent out their apartments, homes, cabins, boats and more - offers online listings from more than 16,000 cities worldwide. "This investment will help us respond to increasing international demand by accelerating hiring, and the opening of offices around the world in order to support our growing community on more local levels," said Joe Gebbia, Airbnb co-founder and chief performance officer, in a statement. Gebbia conceived the idea for the company in 2008 with his then-roommate, Brian Chesky, after hotels in their area were sold out due to a conference.