DUBAI: Ride-hailing company Uber Technologies Inc. is in talks to buy Dubai-based rival Careem Networks FZ for about $2 billion to $2.5 billion, Bloomberg reported on Monday, citing people familiar with the matter.
No final decisions have been made, and the companies may decide against the transaction, according to Bloomberg.
Uber and Careem held preliminary talks in July to combine their Middle Eastern ride-hailing services, hoping to resolve a costly rivalry in the region, Bloomberg had previously reported.
Careem declined to comment and Uber did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Uber, which is on track to go public next year, has been seeking new avenues of growth even as it battles intense competition in its core business of riding hailing.
The company has been building services such as food delivery and freight hauling, and, in April, acquired electric bike service JUMP Bikes to offer US passengers an alternative to cars.
SoftBank, which is the majority stakeholder in Uber, has opened up the possibility of combining Uber with other ride-hailing assets the Japanese group owns across Asia. SoftBank has stakes in Singapore-based Grab and India’s Ola.
At the time of the investment, SoftBank said it wants Uber to focus on growing in the United States, Europe, Latin America and Australia — not Asia, which has been among the most costly and competitive regions for the ride-hailing company, a source had told Reuters.
Uber in talks to buy Dubai ride-hailing rival Careem -Bbg
Uber in talks to buy Dubai ride-hailing rival Careem -Bbg
No Saudi acquisition offers: FC Barcelona tells Al-Eqtisadiah
CAIRO: FC Barcelona has not received any offers, whether from Saudi Arabia or elsewhere, to acquire the club, according to an official source who spoke to Al-Eqtisadiah.
According to the source, the circulating news regarding the possibility of finalizing a deal to acquire the club in the coming period is a mere rumor.
Recent Spanish reports had indicated the possibility of a Saudi acquisition of Barcelona shares for around €10 billion ($11.7 billion), a move considered capable of saving the club from its financial crises if it were to happen, especially as it suffers from debts estimated at around €2.5 billion.
Sale not in management’s hands
Joan Gaspart, the former president of the club, confirmed that the current board of directors, chaired by Joan Laporta, does not have the right to dispose of the club’s ownership.
He added: “FC Barcelona is owned by about 150,000 members, and selling the club is something the owners will not accept. FC Barcelona possesses something no other club in the world has; money is very important, and so is passion, but the sentiment of the members today is to continue what the club has been for 125 years.”
High market value
Despite the financial crisis the club has been going through in recent years, FC Barcelona ranks sixth on the list of the world’s highest market value clubs, with an estimated value of €1.12 billion, according to Transfermarkt. Meanwhile, its rival Real Madrid tops the list with a market value of €1.38 billion.
