The Real Leader in Ride Sharing Emerges

Japan’s SoftBank Group Corp owns shares in the world’s largest ride sharing companies including Uber, Didi Chuxing, Grand and Ola and has increasingly been making moves to change the industry as they feel is best.

Recently SoftBank said it plans to transfer its stakes in their ride sharing firms to the SoftBank Vision Fund, a move which if approved would make the fund one of the world’s biggest investors in the fast-changing industry.

SoftBank’s plan is move its stakes in Uber, Didi Chuxing, Grab and Ola according to a recent press conference with SoftBank Chief Executive Masayoshi Son.

SoftBank is the world’s largest private equity fund. Last year had assets of over $93 billion.

The move would provide the fund’s investors – which include Apple, Foxconn the sovereign wealth funds of Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi a large position in the ride sharing industry. This is a rapidly changing industry and one which SoftBank hasn’t been shy about weighing in on.

In March, Uber said it would sell its Southeast Asian business to bigger regional rival Grab so it it could better focus on its battle with Ola in India.

 

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The Asia Rising Editorial Team is made up of a multinational team of writers, content experts and journalists from around the world operating out of our Bureaus in New York, Bangkok, Toronto and while on assignment across Asia.