Ride-hailing car service Uber has closed a $1.2 billion venture funding round, valuing the company at $17 billion. The eye-popping figure, more than quadruple Uber’s worth a year ago, makes the company one of the most highly valued startups of all time.
“With our growth and expansion, the company has evolved from being a scrappy Silicon Valley tech startup to being a way of life for millions of people in cities around the world,” CEO Travis Kalanick said in a blog post announcing the new funding.
Investors in the funding round included Fidelity Investments, Wellington Management, BlackRock Inc. and Google Ventures, according to the Wall Street Journal. The startup plans to raise an additional $200 million before it closes the funding round.
Uber, which allows users to hail car rides through a mobile app, is available in 128 cities in 37 countries. The company has expanded from its original luxury car service to offer a cheaper ride-sharing program similar to competitors such as Lyft and a courier service currently being tested in New York. Last December the company confirmed that it was generating gross revenue of more than $20 million per week, or more than $1 billion per year.
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