IPO is an abbreviation of Initial Public Offer. FPO is an abbreviation of a Follow-On Public Offer.
Key Difference: IPO vs. FPO
IPO is the first public issue of the shares of a private company that is going public whereas FPO is the second or subsequent public issue of the shares of an already listed public company.
IPO is released with an intention to raise capital through public investment whereas FPO is offered with an aim to inflow subsequent public investment.
An IPO is generally riskier than FPO as in IPO an individual investor does not know about what may happen with the company in the future. On the other hand in FPO, the investors are aware as the company is already listed on stock exchange. Therefore, the investors can study the past performance and make assumptions about the company’s future growth prospects.