(Reuters) -Shares of ServiceTitan rose about 42% in their U.S. market debut on Thursday, giving the cloud-based software company a valuation of $8.97 billion.

The company's shares opened at $101 apiece in their Nasdaq debut, compared with the initial public offering (IPO) price of $71.

Strong equity markets, the prospect of lower interest rates and expectations of a soft landing for the economy have bolstered investor confidence in the U.S. IPO market this year.

ServiceTitan joins a handful of venture capital-backed firms that have gone public this year, including social media platform Reddit and cybersecurity software firm Rubrik.

Reddit's stock price has increased nearly fivefold from its IPO levels, while Rubrik's shares have more than doubled, as of last close.

Sweden's buy now, pay later platform Klarna and Genesys, an AI-driven developer of call-center software, are also among the major tech firms that are moving toward a U.S. listing.

ServiceTitan sold 8.8 million shares in the IPO, raising about $625 million. The startup lifted its indicated range for the offering before pricing its IPO above the raised range.

"The higher-than-expected pricing of ServiceTitan's IPO reflects strong demand for the stock and signals growing investor interest in public markets for IPOs," said Joe Endoso, president of Linqto Capital.

Founded by Ara Mahdessian and Vahe Kuzoyan, ServiceTitan has become a dominant player in a niche market, making software used by more than 11,800 businesses that are run by technicians serving the heating, ventilation and air-conditioning sectors.

Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Wells Fargo and Citigroup led a 14-firm underwriting syndicate for the IPO.