Uber, the US-based ride hailing service that has raised more than $13bn in financing from investors that include several corporates, plans to file for its initial public offering next month, Reuters reported yesterday.
The company will file publicly for the flotation and kick off its IPO roadshow in the coming weeks, according to people familiar with the matter. Its largest rival, Lyft, publicly filed for its own offering earlier this month.
Founded in 2009, Uber runs an on-demand ride service that is the market leader in several countries around the world including the US. It also operates a food delivery service called UberEats and an autonomous driving research unit that is seeking funding.
Uber’s last funding came in August 2018 when carmaker Toyota invested $500m at a $72bn valuation, taking its total debt and equity financing to about $13.3bn, but reports have suggested its valuation at IPO could be $100bn or even $120bn.
Telecommunications group SoftBank is a key investor in the company, having led a $1.25bn primary round and $7.2bn secondary share purchase in late 2017 that included TPG and Dragoneer Investment Group, at a $68bn pre-money valuation.
Chinese counterpart Didi Chuxing, software provider Microsoft, internet company Baidu, media groups Axel Springer and Bennett Coleman & Co, and GV, a corporate venturing subsidiary of internet and technology conglomerate Alphabet, are also shareholders.
Uber’s backers additionally include Fidelity, Goldman Sachs, Citic Bank, BlackRock, Lowercase Capital, First Round, Hillhouse Capital, Sequoia Capital, Benchmark, Wellington Management, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Menlo Ventures, Data Collective, CrunchFund, New Enterprise Associates, Innovation Endeavors and Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.
In addition to giving it a market for its shares, the IPO would serve to boost Uber’s coffers. The company made a reported $11.3bn in revenue in 2018, but recoded a $3.3bn net loss, not taking into account the proceeds from its sales of subsidiaries in Southeast Asia and Russia.
