Uber raises $3.5b from Saudi Arabian government investment fund

Photo credit: OC Mag.

Via The New York Times

Uber said on Wednesday that it had raised $3.5 billion from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, the kingdom’s main investment fund, in one of the largest-ever investments into a privately held startup.

The money was part of the ride-hailing giant’s most recent financing round and continued to value Uber at $62.5 billion. The investment, which was months in the making, does not cash out any of Uber’s existing investors.

The news comes barely a few weeks after Apple announced its US$1 billion investment in Didi Chuxing, Uber’s primary rival in China. The Silicon Valley-headquartered ride-hailing startup views the Middle East as an important market. In November, it announced it would invest up to US$250 million in markets across the region to fuel growth.

Uber’s nemesis in the Middle East is Careem, which operates in more than 25 cities and raised US$60 million in its last round of funding.

The latest cash injection means Uber has now raised more than US$11 billion from private investors since inception.