Who Decided To Hold – And Fold – Uber Shares To SoftBank

Now that Uber has completed its secondary transaction with SoftBank, there is a clearer picture of just how much money the company’s investors are walking away with after the deal.

Last month, SoftBank announced that it had acquired a large stake in Uber that equaled 20 percent of the ridesharing company’s total value. The transaction gave Uber a $48 billion value, approximately 30 percent lower than the company’s valuation of close to $70 billion. SoftBank also invested $1.25 billion directly in Uber at the previous valuation.

According to TechCrunch, Menlo Ventures sold the majority of its holdings, making close to $1 billion from the deal. First Round Capital sold close to 40 percent of its shares, making $800 million.

In addition, Benchmark Capital sold about $900 million in Uber shares, almost 15 percent of its 13 percent stake. The company also dropped its lawsuit against Uber’s former CEO Travis Kalanick, which it promised to do if the SoftBank deal was completed. As part of that agreement, six directors will be added to the Uber board, and voting changes will be introduced that will limit Kalanick’s power over the board and give the company much-needed stability.

Other good news for Kalanick: He sold 29 percent of his holdings in the secondary transaction, earning him $1.4 billion.

Investors were only able to sell about 58 percent of what they attempted to unload. The transaction also gave early Uber shareholders, including employees, the chance to sell their shares. Not all investors opted to sell, though, with Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers holding onto its shares.