India to benefit as Uber set to mop up $2.1 bn: Key facts on its latest fund raising

App-based taxi aggregator Uber is looking to raise $2.1 billion (approximately Rs 14,051.1 crore) in a fundraising round led by Tiger Global and other investors, valuing the company at $62.5 billion. Here are the key facts you need to know about the latest round of fund raising: [caption id=“attachment_2417398” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Reuters[/caption] 1) According to a PTI report citing sources, the funds raised will be used primarily for investments in India and China. The company, which had in July committed $1 billion to expand Indian operations, is likely to announce the next round of investment for the country early next year. Uber, which launched Indian services in 2012 in Bangalore, is present in about 22 Indian cities now. It has identified India as a priority market and is its largest outside the US. 2) Uber has filed documents in Delaware giving details about the fundraising wherein the company said it plans to raise $2.1 billion from investors including Tiger Global, which will be investing in the company for the first time. Interestingly, Tiger Global is also an investor in OlaCabs, Uber’s rival in India. 3) According to Business Insider, in July when Uber raised $1 billion, its valuation was $52 billion. That seems to have risen to $62.5 billion in nearly five months. The company is now the most valued private company in the technology space. With $46 billion, Xiaomi is a distant second, the report says. 4) The fund-raising comes at a time when Ola has inked a pact with global peers – Didi, Lyft and GrabTaxi – that will allow users of these ridesharing apps to seamlessly travel across India, China, the US and Southeast Asia. Both developments indicate that the global battle for the taxi market is likely to get more fierce. Uber has presence in 67 countries. The alliance claims to have presence in all of Southeast Asia, India, China and the US, reaching nearly 50 percent of the worlds population. With inputs from PTI