SoftBank emerges as lead financier for Uber rivals

(July 25): Uber Technologies Inc. is at risk of losing out on another big chunk of the global market.

Grab, the leading provider of ride-hailing services in Southeast Asia, said Monday it raised US$2 billion ($2.73 billion) from Japan’s SoftBank Group Corp. and China’s Didi Chuxing and expects to receive another US$500 million from new and existing backers. The money will help Grab, which already dominates the region, defend its turf against Uber in one of the San Francisco company’s most important global markets after retreats from China and Russia.

Uber’s rivals are piling on a company in crisis. While a series of scandals at Uber culminated in the ouster of Chief Executive Officer Travis Kalanick in June, its competitors in China, India, Brazil and Singapore have raised a total of about US$9 billion to accelerate their expansions. The money, primarily from Masayoshi Son’s SoftBank, jeopardizes Uber’s push for global dominance and its US$69 billion valuation.

---

Related Stories

• Uber faces FTC consumer protection probe over subscriptions
• Lexus lessons for China in tackling tariffs
• ‘Buy’ Grab as 3QFY2024 earnings hitting all the right notes, analysts say

---