Is Uber going public?
Investors have been giddy about the possibilities for years.
After all, when it comes to disruptive technologies and business models, Uber’s right up there with Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL), Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA), and Google (NASDAQ: GOOG).
Well, IPO-wishers are once again getting excited after a rumor that Chinese investment management firm Hillhouse Capital could be looking to plow as much as a billion dollars into the ride-hailing app.
Some analysts have suggested this could be a sign that the company could soon be going public.
Certainly it’s not out of the question, as the company does require a steady flow of capital. In fact, according to a bond prospectus, Uber is operating at a loss of nearly a half billion dollars.
A Bloomberg report has showed $470 million in operating losses with $415 million in revenue. Although Uber reps told reporters that those are “substantially old numbers that do not reflect business activities today.”
Either way, Uber is not a company that has the freedom to ignore large capital raises. And certainly a successful IPO could make that happen.
In the meantime, the company is dealing with a massive headache in France, where a taxi strike turned violent as 3,000 licensed cab drivers blocked the entrance to Charles de Gaulle airport. Apparently 70 vehicles were damaged (some torched), seven police officers were injured and about a dozen people were arrested. Over a freaking ride-hailing app!
Uber under attack!
Yesterday afternoon we learned that two Uber bosses were arrested and charged with misleading commercial practices, complicity in the illegal exercise of the taxi profession and illegal use of private data.
Man, I do love France. It’s an absolutely beautiful country populated by lovely people who have a healthy relationship with food and sex. Two of my favorite things. But damn, when it comes to the basic fundamentals of a free market, my French brothers and sisters get tripped up.
The crazy thing is, it was the licensed cab drivers that incited the violence, yet it’s Uber that’s the “problem.”
There have even been reports of taxi drivers posing as customers so that they could lure the Uber drivers to isolated locations then assault them. Unreal.
Still, despite a gaggle of angry socialists in Europe, Uber’s not going gently into that good night. The app is incredibly popular all across the globe. And here in the U.S., you’d be hard-pressed to find many working folks who haven’t used Uber at least once.
I’ve actually given up regular taxi cabs altogether. Uber simply provides better service at a competitive price. What’s not to love? Unless, of course, you run an antiquated taxi cab company.
In any event, I certainly would love nothing more than to see an Uber IPO this year. And mark my words, if such a thing happens, it’ll be the biggest IPO of 2015.
