By Barry Eitel
SAN FRANCISCO
A select group of Uber investors say they expect the company will hold an initial public offering in the next one to three years, sources close to a fundraising effort told CNBC Friday.
That fundraising effort raised another $1.2 billion Thursday for the rideshare service.
Uber, now available in more than 50 countries, is valued at $41.2 billion. The current worth of the service easily makes it the hottest commodity among private startups in Silicon Valley, and it is even above the market capitalization of massive public companies like Delta Airlines and Kraft Foods.
As the time of the IPO dangles in the near future, sources claim investors believe Uber will enjoy a lofty valuation of $100 billion.
On top of the money obtained in the fundraiser round that closed Thursday, Uber could sell another $600 million in stock in the early months of 2015 as well as selling off $1 billion in debt in a deal worked out with Goldman Sachs.
The multibillion valuation is astounding taking into account Uber owns very little material goods and offers a fairly unremarkable app.
The leaders of the five-year-old company have said they see Uber as a new Amazon, but offering transport and delivery instead of online retail.
But the grandiose visions of the company’s executives have caused clashes with many enemies.
Uber, which provides intense competition for traditional taxi services long entrenched in cities, seems to follow a policy of breaking laws they feel are unnecessary, obviously causing feuds with federal, state and local regulators.
Founder and CEO Travis Kalanick voiced excitement earlier this year about self-driving vehicles and replacing the costly expense of “the other dude in the car,” breeding ill will among drivers, some of which already protesting the company’s payment structure.
Last month, an executive even suggested at a dinner that the company hire private investigators to harass journalists critical of the service.
But even these considerable impediments can’t stop Uber from being the Silicon Valley’s poster child of its generation.
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