Japan’s SoftBank Group has Sold Uber shares worth US$ 2 billion

According to a document released on the 12^th of January, 2021, SoftBank group sold US$ 2 billion worth of shares in Uber and used the opportunity of a surge in the US ride-hailing giant’s value.

According to a US stock filing on Uber’s website, an affiliate of SoftBank Vision Fund sold 38 million shares for US$53.46 apiece. Despite this change, with a ten per cent stake worth about US$ 10 billion, it still remains the firm’s main shareholder.

Over the past few years, SoftBank has invested heavily in ride-hailing platforms on a global scale, from California-based Uber to Didi Chuxing in China, Singapore’s Grab and India’s Ola.

Its decision to acquire a large share of Uber appeared to have had its negative effects when its price plunged following a disappointing 2019 initial public offering, before being hit by the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdowns destroyed the demand for hired transport.

By the end of March, Uber’s share price had dropped below US$15, from US$42 on its first day of trading in 2019.

Due to a few changes, the outlook has brightened positively for such avenues as requests for food delivery rises with people still stuck at home and the US firm’s share price has risen.

In Tokyo morning trade, shares by SoftBank rose 0.8 per cent to ¥8,050.