My best guess for where the $112 million is going is not for cashing out but for rapidly expanding abroad where they're seeing clones rise quickly and gain traction (Wimdu, 9flats). I expect to see a few small acquisitions to build out more inventory in Asia (East Asia + Australia) and probably South America. Congrats to the team on their success over the last year, I recommend AirBnB to my friends all the time.
The do have legitimate competition abroad and they just purchased Accoleo to get a physical presence in Europe.
Additionally, expansion in the U.S. is going to come at a higher cost as they battle for the lucrative vacation rental market with other well-funded companies like VRBO.
Airbnb is really interesting because their relatively agnostic platform can hit a huge market - couches, single rooms, apartments, houses, boats, independent hotels, etc., along with a lot of international markets to play in, whereas competition has generally been more focused on satisfying a specific segment.
I'll be very curious to see how this company's next series of strategic decisions play out, given this very nice Series B.
