The former CEO of ride-hailing app Uber, Travis Kalanick, is expected to sell almost a third of his shares in the company.
The shares Kalanick is expected to sell are valued at a total of $1.4bn, making up 29% of his total 10% stake in the company, and will reportedly be sold to SoftBank.
Kalanick’s shares will make up part of a larger deal that has been led by SoftBank, taking a total stake of 17.5% in Uber by mostly buying shares from investors and employees.
Originally Kalanick offered to sell a larger amount of his shares equating to half of his 10% stake in the company, however there was reportedly a limit to the amount SoftBank was prepared to buy leaving him to sell only the 29%.
Other investors and employees wishing to sell shares to SoftBank also had to reduce the original amount they wished to part with.
As a result of the sale of his shares, Kalanick is expected to become a billionaire on paper for the first time, after boasting in the past to have never sold any of his equity in Uber before.
Kalanick stepped down as Uber’s CEO in June last year after a series of legal mishaps around the culture of the company and its workers, as well as a series of government investigations to how the company does business.
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SoftBank and Uber agreed on the investment deal in November last year, with Uber commenting on the deal saying: “We believe this agreement is a strong vote of confidence in Uber’s long-term potential. It will help fuel our investments in technology and our continued expansion at home and abroad while strengthening our corporate governance.”
The share deal between SoftBank and Uber is expected to close later this month, which after it has Kalanick’s influence at the company will be reduced.
