DigitalOcean Holdings Inc is aiming for a valuation of nearly $5 billion in its US initial public offering (IPO), the cloud services firm said on Monday, as the shift to work from home due to the COVID-19 pandemic accelerates the switch to cloud-based computing.

The company is looking to raise as much as $775.5 million through an offering of 16.5 million shares, priced between $44 and $47 apiece, according to a regulatory filing.

DigitalOcean provides its cloud platform and tools to developers, startups and small- and medium-sized businesses and has over 570,000 customers in more than 185 countries.

The company operates in a sector dominated by larger rivals including Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Corp, Oracle Corp and IBM Corp.

DigitalOcean's IPO underscores unprecedented investor appetite for technology companies, which have seen demand skyrocket during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The company will list its stock on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "DOCN".

Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs and J.P. Morgan are the lead underwriters for the offering.