Uber Speeds Past Facebook as Quickest to $50 Billion Value Level Uber reached an important milestone in valuation three years before Facebook.
By Ray Hennessey Edited by Dan Bova
Opinions expressed by BIZ Experiences contributors are their own.
Uber just closed a new round of funding that will value the company at more than $50 billion, according to The Wall Street Journal.
The newspaper says that Uber raised close to $1 billion in the round, which brings the total amount of equity financing the company has raised to more than $5 billion.
Previously, Facebook had been the only venture-backed private company to sport a $50 billion valuation. But it took Facebook a good deal longer to hit that level: eight years, compared with Uber's five.
Facebook, which subsequently went public, is now worth just over $260 billion.
The Journal says investors in this latest round include Microsoft and Bennett, Coleman, and Company Ltd., the flagship brand of India media conglomerate The Times Group.
The Indian investment is timely. Uber has set aside $1 billion specifically to boost its business in India over the next nine months.
The latest funding round comes a week after Uber prevailed in a public fight over growth in New York City. New York Mayor Bill de Blasio had tried to limit the number of cars Uber could manage in the city, but he backed down, following pressure from business groups, citizens and high-profile celebrities and BIZ Experiencess.
Related: New York City Caves on Plan to Cap Uber Drivers
