$17 billion valuation

Uber Confirms raising a $1.2 billion round of venture capital funding, putting the company’s total pre-money valuation at $17 billion, up from $3.5 billion last year.  The new financing is led by Fidelity Investments and includes Wellington Management, Summit Partners, BlackRock Inc. and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, as well as current investors Google Ventures and Menlo Ventures. CEO says:

This is about capitalizing for the opportunities that we see ahead of ourselves.  If you can make it economical for people to get out of their cars or sell their cars, and turn transportation into a service, it´s a pretty big deal.

The financing round is still open to unnamed strategic partners who might want to invest another $200 million.