Uber seizes new $3.5b fund, bids for more market share in China

Photo taken on April 14, 2016 shows a Uber car-hailing station in Longyang Avenue, Wuhan, capital of Central China's Hubei province.[Photo/IC]

US tech company Uber, who provides on-demand transportation services through its mobile application, received $3.5b in fresh round from Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, said the Middle East investor on Thursday in a statement.

Liu Zhen, senior vice president of Uber China, told China Daily that currently the G-round fundraising of the company has reached $6 billion.

"The $3.5 billion raised from Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund announced on Thursday will support the global business expansion of Uber, including the Chinese market," said Liu.

According to Uber, the company's valuation reached $62.5 billion before it started G-round fundraising. After the Middle East kingdom's investment fund, both the valuation and the single round fundraising of the company have become one of the largest-ever investments into a privately held start-up.

According to the New York Times, the royal family of Saudi Arabia is barely seen participating in venture capital investing deals, though some of them, such as Prince Alwaleed bin Talal, has invested in Lyft, a competitor of Uber in the US market.

For a taxi-hailing app that covers 460 cities in more than 69 countries, the competition between Uber and local enterprises have always been and will continue, as the company expands to achieve new territories.

Last September, Uber confirmed to raise a further $1.2 billion in funding, led by Chinese technology company Baidu Inc.

In China, Uber is spending millions in a subsidy war with Didi Chuxing, one of the major local competitors backed by Chinese Internet giant Alibaba Group Holding Ltd and Tencent Holdings Ltd. The latter just secured $1 billion in funding from Apple Inc last month.