Uber posts higher revenue of US$1.75b

SAN FRANCISCO: Even as Uber Technologies Inc’s investors mounted a revolt against the then-chief executive officer over a string of self-inflicted scandals, the ride-hailing company’s financial performance continued to improve in the second quarter of the year, based on financial results provided by the company.

Uber generated US$1.75 billion (RM7.48 billion) in adjusted net revenue in the second quarter, up 17 per cent from the prior quarter. Uber narrowed losses by nine per cent to US$645 million.

Travis Kalanick, Uber’s cofounder, resigned as chief executive on June 20, several days before the end of the second quarter. The results show that Uber continued to make progress on narrowing its losses while growing its business, even as the company responded to a relentless cascade of scandals.

Kalanick stepped down after a group of investors led by venture capital firm Benchmark demanded his resignation. Other investors have signaled concerns as well. Multiple mutual funds backing Uber recently marked down the value of their stock by as much as 15 per cent.

Among Uber’s biggest costs: India, Southeast Asia, discounts for passengers and bonuses for drivers, insurance payments, employee salaries and self-driving car research. At the end of the second quarter, Uber had US$6.6 billion cash on hand.

The company’s gross bookings, the total money taken in fares, reached US$8.7 billion, an increase of 17 per cent from the prior quarter.

Uber has been searching for a chief financial officer. Its head of finance, Gautam Gupta, left Uber this year and was replaced temporarily by Prabir Adarkar, whose promotion to vice-president was announced to the company on Tuesday. Bloomberg