Tough Battle Ahead for Uber, DiDi Bags $600 Million from China Life Insurance

BENGALURU: Beijing based DiDi Chuxing may be the largest mobile transportation platform in China, but the battle for dominance is not easy when the opponent is a global hotshot among online transportation platforms- the Uber. Backing the American player is the latest 10 digit figure funding ($3.5 billion) from Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund.

On the other side DiDi has $1 billion investment from Apple Inc., secured last month, and a whopping $6.3 billion raised from its earlier funding rounds. The Chinese giant looks in a mood of putting up the bloodiest battle Uber has seen during its global expansion. DiDi’s firepower got yet another upgrade when the company announced its latest funding of $600 million from China Life Insurance Co Ltd. The investment includes equity of $300 million and a long-term borrowing commitment of $305 million, the companies said in a statement.

Being a marketplace where mergers and acquisitions are frequent, the local media is speculating a possible ‘team-up’ between the American and the Chinese giants in the future.

In a communication to Reuters, sources told that DiDi was working towards an initial public offering in the United States that would likely take place in 2018.

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