Uber takes on - The World

I just cannot believe the pace of growth of this firm. It is breathtaking. Uber Technologies Inc. is an American international transportation network company headquartered in San Francisco, California. The company develops, markets and operates the Uber mobile app, which allows consumers with smartphones to submit a trip request which is then routed to Uber drivers who use their own cars. By 28 May 2015, the service was available in 58 countries and 300 cities worldwide.

CapX: Not content with raising $1 billion to fund a major expansion in China, Uber has announced that it is putting aside another billion dollars in resources to grow its business in India.

The U.S. company, valued at more than $40 billion (now $50 billion says WSJ) based on its latest financing, is crunching through the gears in the world’s two most populous countries in response to strong competition from domestic rivals Didi Kuaidi (China) and Ola (India) — both of which count SoftBank, itself a burgeoning taxi app player, among their investors — and the opportunity to reach more people as smartphones sales continue to increase in India.

Leaked communications from Uber CEO Travis Kalanick last month revealed that the company is handling 1 million rides per day in China, which is expected to surpass the U.S. as its busiest market before the end of the year. India isn’t at that level yet, but Uber said this new billion-dollar investment is designed to take its business there to that same 1 million rides per day milestone — that’s a figure that it expects to cross within the next nine months at the latest.

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