優(yōu)步籌謀新一輪融資

Uber is planning a new round of fundraising that would at least match the $68bn peak valuation it reached before this year’s round of scandals — though investors who take part would be able to buy into the ride hailing company at a lower overall price than the headline number suggests.

優(yōu)步(Uber)正籌劃新一輪融資，至少能回到今年丑聞風(fēng)波之前其所達(dá)到的680億美元的估值高峰，不過參與此次融資的投資者可以低于上述目標(biāo)值建議的總體價(jià)格買入這家叫車服務(wù)公司。

The unusual arrangement, confirmed by two people familiar with the plan, is designed to help Uber maintain that it has not fallen from the high-water mark set by its last investment round more than a year ago, despite the upheaval from a sexual harassment scandal this year that has gutted its senior executive ranks.

經(jīng)兩名知情人證實(shí)，這一不尋常的安排旨在幫助優(yōu)步堅(jiān)稱其沒有從一年多前上一輪融資所設(shè)置的高水位上掉下來，雖然今年的性騷擾丑聞風(fēng)波已打擊了其高管力量。

The plan would include a secondary sale of shares by existing investors at a current market valuation that is likely to be some way below $68bn.

該計(jì)劃將包括現(xiàn)有投資者以當(dāng)前市場(chǎng)估值出手所持股票，目前估值可能會(huì)低于680億美元。

The fundraising plan is part of an attempt by Uber’s board to bring more stability to the company’s shareholder base as it tries to recover from the departure of founder Travis Kalanick as chief executive officer.

此次融資計(jì)劃是優(yōu)步董事會(huì)提高公司股東基礎(chǔ)穩(wěn)定性的一次嘗試，它試圖從創(chuàng)始人特拉維斯•卡蘭尼克(Travis Kalanick)被免去首席執(zhí)行官職務(wù)的打擊中恢復(fù)過來。

Pairing it with a secondary share sale would also give existing investors, including employees, a chance to cash in part of their holdings at a time when the chances of an initial public offering in the near-term appear to be receding.

加入股票轉(zhuǎn)手方案也使現(xiàn)有投資者(包括員工)有機(jī)會(huì)在當(dāng)前這個(gè)時(shí)刻進(jìn)行部分套現(xiàn)，眼下短期內(nèi)進(jìn)行首次公開發(fā)行(IPO)的可能性似乎有所下降。

It could also reduce the influence of venture capital firm Benchmark, which owns 13 per cent of Uber’s stock and earlier this month mounted a high-profile lawsuit against Mr Kalanick.

它還可以減少風(fēng)險(xiǎn)投資公司Benchmark的影響，該公司擁有優(yōu)步13%的股票，曾在本月初對(duì)卡蘭尼克發(fā)起引人注目的訴訟。

The sale by Uber itself would raise around $1bn and be set at or above the valuation Uber achieved in June last year, when it sold a 5 per cent stake to Saudi Arabia for $3.5bn. The secondary share sale, on the other hand, would be for as much as $10bn, and would reflect a market price that took into account the company’s struggles this year.

優(yōu)步本身的出售將籌得10億美元左右，而且讓優(yōu)步的估值達(dá)到或高于去年6月的水平，當(dāng)時(shí)優(yōu)步以35億美元的價(jià)格將5%的股權(quán)出售給沙特阿拉伯。另一方面，此次股票轉(zhuǎn)手最高可達(dá)到100億美元，可以反映出該公司經(jīng)歷今年困境后的市場(chǎng)價(jià)格。

To enable Uber to sell the higher-priced shares, investors who bought in would be offered the chance to buy the secondary stock on a pro-rata basis, resulting in an average price per share at a discount to the headline valuation.

為了讓優(yōu)步以更高價(jià)位出售股票，持有股票的投資者將有機(jī)會(huì)按比例買入轉(zhuǎn)手股票，這將導(dǎo)致每股平均價(jià)格低于目標(biāo)估值。

The arrangement — showing that Uber itself could still raise some money at the $68bn valuation — would save face for Saudi Arabia, which would otherwise be seen as having overpaid for its stake in the company last year, according to one person familiar with the plan.

這一安排顯示優(yōu)步本身仍可以按680億美元的估值來融資。據(jù)一位知情人士表示，這一安排將為沙特阿拉伯挽回顏面，否則沙特阿拉伯將被認(rèn)為去年收購(gòu)優(yōu)步股票時(shí)支付了過高費(fèi)用。

Another person said that the structure would also save other Uber investors from being forced to write down the value of their existing holdings. Writedowns normally follow a so-called “down round”, when a private company raises new money at a lower valuation than it did before.

另一位知情人表示，這一結(jié)構(gòu)還可以拯救其他優(yōu)步投資者不必被迫減記其現(xiàn)有持股的價(jià)值。減記通常發(fā)生在所謂的“流血融資”(down round，估值較低的融資-譯者注)之后，即一家私企在估值下降時(shí)進(jìn)行新一輪融資。

They may not avoid a writedown, however, if the average price paid by investors is taken as a yardstick for the company’s present value.

不過他們可能還是無法避免減記，如果投資者支付的平均價(jià)格被當(dāng)做公司當(dāng)前估值的標(biāo)準(zhǔn)。