Uber looking to sell Didi, other non-strategic stakes, CEO says
- Uber chief executive said its Didi stake is not strategic, as they are a competitor and the China market was ‘a pretty difficult environment with very little transparency’
- Uber’s operational business last quarter for the first time achieved profitability, but its Didi stake drove a US$2.4 billion net loss in the third quarter
The CEO of Uber Technologies Inc said on Tuesday the company was looking sell stakes in what it considers non-strategic investments in other companies, including its shares in Chinese ride hailing company Didi Global Inc.
Speaking at a virtual fireside chat with a UBS analyst, Chief Executive Dara Khosrowshahi said many of the companies in which Uber has a stake have recently gone public and are still subject to a lock-up period.
While Khosrowshahi said Uber would continue to hold some stakes for strategic reasons, it was looking to sell many of them, including in Didi.
“Our Didi stake we don’t believe is strategic. They’re a competitor, China is a pretty difficult environment with very little transparency,” the Uber CEO said.
Khosrowshahi said the company was in no rush to sell the shares. “Those kinds of stakes we look to monetise smartly over time,” he said.
Uber shares rose 4.3 per cent to close at US$37.26 after Khosrowshahi’s remarks on Tuesday. He also said Uber last week had its best week ever in terms of companywide gross bookings at its ride-hail and food delivery operations.