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SoftBank CEO Son says he may invest in either Uber or Lyft
Japanese tech giant SoftBank Corp. is setting its sights on ride-hailing companies Uber Technologies Inc. and Lyft Inc. with an eye toward a possible investment in either of the two.
“We are interested in discussing with Uber, we are also interested in discussing with Lyft, we have not decided which way,” SoftBank Chief Executive Officer and founder Masayoshi Son said during its first-quarter earnings call on Monday.
Rumors have been circulating for a while that SoftBank might be interested in some kind of deal, with one report from last month saying Uber shareholders were mulling a stock sale to the Japanese firm. This is the first time that SoftBank has publicly stated its interest, though Son indicated that discussions were still at an early stage.
“Whether we decide to partner and invest into Uber or Lyft, I don’t know what will be the end result,” he told reporters.
SoftBank’s interest in Uber and Lyft is not really a surprise given its earlier investments in similar companies such as GrabTaxi Holdings Pte Ltd in Southeast Asia, Ola (ANI Technologies Pvt. Ltd.) in India, and Didi Chuxing Technology Co. in China. It’s unlikely that SoftBank will invest in both companies, however.
As to which company SoftBank most favors at this stage, that’s also up in the air. Clearly Uber is the bigger of the two, with a valuation of more than $60 billion, compared with Lyft’s $7.5 billion valuation. And some observers interpreted Son’s statements as part of a negotiation with Uber in particular.
But Uber has been beset by controversies that SoftBank may not appreciate, while Lyft recently announced its hit 1 million rides a day. That suggests Lyft may be trying to take advantage of its rival’s troubles to quietly grow its own business.
What is clear, however, is that Son believes both companies have a very bright future.
“This is the shared economy and one of the most important industries, I think the way people use the transportation and the lifestyle will be different from today” compared with 30 to 50 years from now, he said. “The autonomous car is definitely coming, and when that stage comes, this ride-share business becomes even more important.”
Image: MIKI Yoshihito/Flickr
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