Zynga Hires New CFO Amid IPO Speculation

Amid speculation that FarmVille studio Zynga is preparing for an IPO, the social game developer has appointed Dave Wehner, formerly a managing director at Allen & Co., as its new chief financial officer. Wehner takes over for Zynga's previous CFO Mark Vranesh, who will now serve as the company's chief accounting officer, reporting to his replacement. During his time at Allen & Co., Wehner led coprorate finance teams tasked with raising capital and helping with acquisitions for the media/tech-focused investment bank's clients. Some have speculated for months that Zynga, the biggest social game and application developer on Facebook (according to total monthly active users across its catalog), is positioning itself for a future IPO, what with private valuations for the company estimated anywhere between $1 billion and $5 billion. Zynga's CEO Mark Pincus, however, said as recently as last April that the company has no plans to go public. A source familiar to the matter also says Wehner's appointment doesn't signal a forthcoming IPO, according to VC news site Venturebeat, which believes it's more likely his hiring is related to future acquisitions, considering his background. Wehner's announced hiring comes just a few days after Zynga confirmed its raising of $150 million in funding from telecommunications/media corporation Softbank, bringing the total amount of venture backing its secured up to $370 million. Last month, reports emerged that Google has also invested $100 million to $200 million in the social games studio.