Uber is set to be one of the 100 most valuable companies in the world. Photo/123.
Uber is set to be one of the 100 most valuable companies in the world. Photo/123.
Uber is anticipated to have a higher valuation than Nike, Volkswagen, British American Tobacco, the Royal Bank of Canada and Salesforce as it prepares to launch of the US stock market.
The ride-hailing company could receive a valuation of as high as US$120bn (NZ$182 billion) in its upcoming initial public offering, almost double the price-tag the ride-hailing company landed in August.
The proposals from US banks suggested Uber seek a valuation much higher than the $76bn it was valued at in August during its most recent fundraising round.
They are also said to indicate that the initial public offering could take place early next year, sooner than had been expected.
Up until now, Uber boss Dara Khosrowshahi has repeatedly said the company would seek to go public in the second half of September.
The documents were reportedly delivered last month by Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, the two banks which were already understood to be the chief contenders to lead the initial public offering prior to Tuesday's reports. The details were first reported by the Wall Street Journal.
Uber declined to comment.
The reports suggest Uber is starting to ramp up work for the IPO, having already put in place a new chief financial officer in August and last year installing Mr Khosrowshahi at the head of the company.
Uber does not have to follow through with banks' proposals, and could choose to join the public markets at a later date. However, an IPO in early 2019 may prove tempting if Uber wants to steal a lead on smaller rival Lyft, which is thought to be planning its own IPO for March or April.
Although Uber is not expected to be profitable when it taps the public markets, the company has claimed it does want to show investors a path to profitability.
Ola is one of the international competitors looking to challenge Uber's dominance. Photo/Getty Images.
In its most recent accounts, Uber's net loss narrowed to $891m in the three months to the end of June, from $1.1bn a year earlier, although it continued to pour cash into new services, such as food delivery and autonomous car development.
Speaking to The Daily Telegraph earlier this week, Fraser Robinson, a former Uber executive who recently left to join British startup Oxbotica, said Uber should scale back its level of spend on things such as driverless cars "to focus on what Uber really does best, which is being a ride-hailing platform".
He said, from what he saw, Mr Khosrowshahi "had realised that should happen, and I think that is starting to happen".
Uber's rivals around the world
Lyft
Uber's main rival in the US, Lyft has followed a strategy of concentrating on its home market to challenge Uber. It was founded in 2012 and is now valued at an estimated $11bn.
Zoomy
Uber's most-established competitor in this market, Zoomy offers lower commission rates for drivers and positions itself as the local, socially responsible alternative to the international company.
Google's self-driving car company, Waymo is plotting the launch of its driverless car taxis in the US later this year. It is Uber's main self-driving car challenger and has previously been engaged in expensive lawsuits with the company.
Didi Chuxing
Uber's rival in Asia, Didi forced Uber to merge its Chinese operations and its expansion has pushed into other countries including Brazil and Mexico. Like Uber, it has backing from Japanese giant Softbank, valuing the company at $56bn.
Taxify
Founded in Estonia, Taxify has challenged Uber in Europe and Africa. It tried to launch in London but ran foul of licencing rules and Transport for London. It is backed by Daimler.
Grab is Uber's South Asian rival. Founded in Singapore it has services across countries like Thailand and Malaysia. As well as ride-hailing it offers services like bike hiring and food delivery to rival UberEats.
Ola
Uber's latest New Zealand challenger, Ola is the market leader in India's ride-hailing market with a service including taxis, luxury cars and even rickshaws. It announced in September that it would be launching in the local market.
