Thirteen of Wall Street's biggest banks just got sued over an IPO that lost nearly 70% of its value.
If you underwrite deals or steer clients into them, this one filed June 9 in Manhattan federal court is worth a look.
Start with the deal. On September 15, 2025, Via Transportation went public on the New York Stock Exchange. Via is a New York company that says it provides software and tech-enabled services to help cities and transit agencies manage public transportation. The IPO sold 10,714,285 shares at $46 apiece, and the company anticipated close to $493 million in gross proceeds, according to the complaint.
The bank lineup is the eye-catching part. Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC and Morgan Stanley & Co. LLC are among the named underwriter defendants, along with Allen & Company, Wells Fargo Securities, Deutsche Bank Securities, Guggenheim Securities, Citizens JMP, Needham, Oppenheimer, Raymond James, William Blair, Nomura, and WR Securities. The filing says the underwriters earned $24.6 million in underwriting discounts and commissions.
Now the claim. Stephan Garlesky, an investor who bought in the offering, filed a class action for everyone who did the same. He alleges the offering documents skipped two facts that counted. One, that Via's revenue per customer - a figure called annual run-rate revenue, or ARR - had already begun to slide. Two, that regulatory roadblocks in Germany were set to stall Via's growth plan there, according to the complaint.
One detail sets this apart. The complaint expressly disclaims fraud. These are strict liability and negligence claims under Sections 11, 12, and 15 of the Securities Act of 1933. The plaintiff doesn't have to show anyone lied on purpose - only that the disclosures were materially wrong.
That's the piece worth chewing on. Under Section 11, underwriters can be liable for misstatements unless they prove they did proper due diligence. The filing alleges none of the underwriters did an adequate due diligence investigation, so they can't lean on that defense.
The stock's slide is laid out step by step. On November 13, 2025, CFO Clara Fain told an earnings call that ARR per customer fell for the first time in eight quarters. Shares dropped almost 13% to $43.14. On February 27, 2026, CEO Daniel Ramot said Via was "facing some headwinds . . . in Germany," and the stock slid nearly 8% to $17.18. On May 12, 2026, after more on Germany, it fell over 17% to $14.12 - nearly 70% below the IPO price, according to the complaint.
The lesson is simple. When a new IPO tanks, plaintiff firms comb the offering documents and pull underwriters in next to the company. Your due diligence file is the firewall.
The allegations have not been tested in court. The defendants have not yet filed a response, and no court has ruled.
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