Uber is the luxury private car company that is going places. It has successfully raised a substantial funding of $361.2 million. More important than the fact is that the major portion of that funding amounting to $258 million is believed to be provided by Google Ventures. With Google money going to it Uber has suddenly become a hot and serious investor commodity. The news about the latest investment was unearthed by AllThingsD who managed to get hold of the Certificate of Incorporation. According to experts and analysts the investors had valued Uber at around $3.4 billion and TachCrunch believes that the valuation of the company has gone up to $3.76 billion after the funding.
Uber’s Clients Are Tracked Throughout Their Trip
The basic service of Uber is to provide a luxurious and comfortable ride to its clients on demand. You may request for the ride using the service’s iPhone and Android apps or from its mobi site after registering your credit card. The advantage of the service is that the clients are picked up and the trip is tracked throughout. It is not clear what new services or features the company will introduce after the funding. However, Google’s preference for the company has caught the attention of the entire industry. Google can invest only $300 million in a year and it chose to invest $258 million in Uber is rather significant. It is the largest single investment the company has ever made.
Uber Operating in 30 Cities Spread Across Four Continents
This funding was finalized at the highest level Uber founder Travis Kalanick had reportedly met Google CEO Larry Page and got himself a highly favorable deal. Google Ventures who do the funding is a wholly owned subsidiary of Google. Travis Kalanick has grand ambitions about his company and this funding might make him even more ambitious. The industry experts feel that Uber will not need any more funding and can directly go to the public with an IPO if they want to raise more money. The company has consolidated its position across the four continents of the world namely North America, South America, Europe and Asia. They have operations in over 30 cities currently where they provide top end cars like Lincoln Town Cars, Cadillac Escalades, BMW 7 Series, and Mercedes-Benz S550 sedans.
Via: ventureburn
