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Uber Raises $3.5 Billion From Saudi Arabia (fortune.com)
An anonymous reader writes: Ride-hailing giant Uber announced Wednesday that it had closed $3.5 billion in new funding from Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund in an effort to shift the country's reliance on oil revenue. Also part of the deal, Public Investment Fund managing director Yasir Al Rumayyan will join Uber's board. The funding will not affect Uber's valuation of $62.5 billion. The company has said in the past that it plans to invest $250 million in the Middle East, where it currently operates in 15 cities across nine countries. Last week, Uber formed a "strategic partnership" with Toyota to provide its drivers with more affordable car purchase and lease terms.
FP?
Of course, the price of oil is in the tank largely because they want it to be. They're trying to squeeze small US and Canadian producers out of business as well as hit Russia.
Maybe, but I can barely make out what you're saying because your horse is too high.
If that was their intention, they would have done this long ago. They are actually trying to squeeze Daesh, who get a large portion of their funding from the oil fields in Iraq and Libya which they've taken over, and are a much bigger threat to the Saudi regime if they are allowed to expand further.
They're mostly trying to squeeze their mortal enemy Iran after the lifting of sanctions. They see little downside in the long term since it hurts the other oil producers as well. SA doesn't particularly like Russia especially after they invaded Afghanistan (SA encouraged people to wage jihad against the Soviet invaders and helped create the Taliban).
I'm hoping that with less income will help curtail SA's influence on Islam from their puritanical Wahhabism which has encouraged a lot of violence. Their madrases funded by oil money have pushed their puritanical views far and wide throughout the islamic world.
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Currently their plan to get away from oil, for the ones at the top only of course, is to become an economic parasite, using investment capital from oil, to bleed other countries economies for ever, whilst contributing nothing positive to those economies, ever. It is looking like given recent developments, they might not have that much left to investment, as the the house of Saud royals are about to get royally screwed in US courts and will have to pay the rest of the world for the harm the House of Saud has caused.
Chaos - everything, everywhere, everywhen
If they want to shift their reliance on oil, shouldn't they be investing in modern, relevant education, ending intolerance, and growing their own economy? Or lets just park all this money in foreign investments... it's much easier.
Their primary asset is their customer base, and their proven ability to get more customers. Your right that the software, the core is the business, could be reproduced for under a million dollars. Getting millions of customers and putting together a team who can consistently run the business so succesfully is quite a bit more difficult.
Ultimately the value of a company (to an investor) is based on a) their projected profit over the next five to ten years or so and b) how consistently they meet projections. Uber's revenue has been more than doubling each year, and they've hit pretty close to their projections. They achieved profitability in the US just a couple of months ahead of schedule.
On the other hand(s), their current numbers don't justify a $50 billion valuation, especially given the legal issues - most cities do in fact have licensing laws for taxis and car services. (Love the laws or hate them, the laws do exist.) The investment money is increased by the fact that people want to invest in the hot new thing, Uber is hip.
3.5 billion? Didn't anyone warn the Saudis about "surge pricing"?
I'm an American. I love this country and the freedoms that we used to have.
They're trying to squeeze small US and Canadian producers out of business as well as hit Russia.
They are actually trying to squeeze Daesh,
They're mostly trying to squeeze their mortal enemy Iran
Interesting that these three Slashdot foreign policy experts all disagree on the Saudis' motives. It's almost as if they have no fucking idea what they're talking about.
I've learned that they're worthless, so I don't read AC comments anymore.
It's almost as if they have no fucking idea what they're talking about.
Actually, they often don't. :D
Ezekiel 23:20
Countries yes, but there's a lot of unemployed people from the US oil industry at the moment who probably want a little more than knowing that their country can still keep on going without them having jobs.
If they hadn't put up so much in political donations we'd be looking at the House of Saud as something very different to being an ally.
You're missing the country they want to hit most of all - Iran.