Who will get rich from Uber's '$90billion' IPO TOMORROW? 'Bad boy of tech' founder who was kicked out of the company for sexual harassment culture, Shark Tank investor and Jeff Bezos are all set to make a fortune
- Uber will set a price for its shares Thursday before going public on Friday
- Launch set to be one of the largest ever, with firm valued at $80-$90bn
- Investor Matt Cohler, 42, is largest individual shareholder in the company
- His 11 per cent stake could be worth up to $7.5 billion depending on share pricing
- Co-founders Travis Kalanick and Garret Camp will also reap billions
- But Jeff Bezos and Shark Tank's Chris Sacca are also set to make millions
Uber is gearing up for its stock market launch on Friday, when investors will reap their rewards for backing the company.
The company set a price target of of $44 to $50 per share last month, and on Thursday it was reported that Uber is looking in the middle to low end of that range for the IPO.
The mid-point of the price range would give Uber a valuation of $86billion on a fully diluted basis, while the low end would value the company at about $80billion.
Though those estimates are down significantly from lofty expectations that Uber would go public with a market cap over $100billion, it would still rank among the largest IPOs in history - and Uber's biggest shareholders stand to take home billions.
Travis Kalanick, the bad boy co-founder of Uber, is set to makebetween $5.2billion and $5.9billion when the company goes public on Friday
The biggest winner will be investment fund manager Matt Cohler, whose firm Benchmark holds 11 per cent of Uber's stock, putting it in line for a windfall of $6.6billion and $7.5 billion at the low and high ends.
Cohler, a 42-year-old Yale graduate, has helped launch some of the biggest names in tech including LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, Uber, Tinder and Bitcoin.
Uber co-founders Travis Kalanick and Garret Camp will also net billions each when the bell rings at the New York Stock Exchange on Friday.
Kalanick's stock could be worth between $5.2billion and $5.9billion, while Camp's shares will range in vale from $3.6billion to $4billion.
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and Shark Tank investor Chris Sacca also made large investments Uber early on and look set to make millions.
Kalanick (left) will pocket the money despite being forced to resign as CEO after a workplace culture of sexual harassment and sexism was exposed. Meanwhile Garret Camp (right), Kalanick's co-founder, is set to make in excess of $5billion
Investor Matt Cohler, seen with his Norwegian wife Pia Oien Cohler, is Uber's largest shareholder, with an 11 per cent stake in the company
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Uber drivers will also be offered bonuses with which to buy shares, with rewards capping out at $40,000 for those who have made more than 40,000 trips.
However, some are unhappy with what they see as a meagre payout for enduring otherwise low wages and poor working conditions, with protesters taking to the streets ahead of the launch.
Kalanick, known as the 'bad boy of tech' for his aggressive workplace ethic, owns 8.6 per cent of Uber's stock and is in line for a payout of around $7.4billion, provided the company hits the mid-point of its valuation.
Meanwhile Camp, with a 6 per cent stake in the firm, is in line for $5.2billion.
Bezos, who invested some $3million early in the business's existence, could see that increase to around $400million.
Kalanick will get his money despite becoming one of the scalps of the MeToo movement when he was was forced out by Uber's board in 2017.
While Kalanick was not accused of anything himself, he was held responsible for encouraging a workplace ethic where women said sexual harassment and sexism was commonplace.
Kalanick was also made infamous for his business buzz-phrases such as Always Be Hustlin', Fierceness, Superpumpedness, and Toe-Stepping.
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos (pictured this week at the Met Gala) is also set for a $400million windfall after becoming one of the earliest investors in the firm
Chris Sacca, best known as one of the investors on Shark Tank, is also set for a large windfall if all goes according to plan on Friday
Silicon Valley power-couple Cyan (left) and Scott Banister, who are among the backers of SpaceX and PayPal, are also heavy invested in Uber
Workers said this fostered an atmosphere of bullying within the firm.
Camp, his co-founder, is less notorious but well-known within the tech world as the founder of StumbleUpon.
They are not the only ones in line to make a fortune on the offering.
Scott and Cyan Banister, a Silicon Valley power-couple who are also involved with firms such as SpaceX and PayPal, count Uber shares as part of their portfolios.
Uber went through 18 rounds of fundraising, raising a total of $22billion, ahead of Friday's public opening.
Venture capital funds were among heavy investors in those rounds, with the likes of Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Blackrock all making the list.
The sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia was also among late but heavy investors in the business.
Other names on the list include Adam Leber, a talent manager whose clients have included Miley Cyrus; Jeremy Stoppelman, the CEO of Yelp; and Gary Vaynerchuk, a wine critic turned internet personality and author.
Drivers are also set to receive a small windfall from the offering, but some took to the streets around the world to protest low wages ahead of the launch
Uber set an estimated price range of between $44 and $50 per share in a filing it made last month.
An inside source told the network this week that the company would likely be seeking a final price somewhere in the middle to low end of that range, putting its value around the $86billion mark.
That price, while still high, marks a significant drop from initial estimates that valued the company around the $100billion mark.
There are fears that Uber could have a rocky entry on to the stock market, after rival ride-sharing firm Lyft went public on March 29.
The company's share price, which started at $72 per share with a total value of $15billion, has fallen consistently ever since and is now around $53.
Neither Lyft nor Uber has ever turned a profit, and there are signs their revenue growth is slowing down.
Other tech IPOs have been similarly fraught, with Facebook's launch in 2012 - then the biggest in tech - being plagued with issues.
While the firm was initially valued at $38 per share - $104billion in total - that price quickly fell to $27 after two weeks, losing investors $40billion in the process.
Facebook shares are now worth around $190 each.
