Uber hires new finance chief as eyes turn to IPO

Ride-hailing firm Uber has hired a new chief financial officer paving the way for a much-talked about initial public offering set for 2019. The firms new CFO, Nelson Chai, is known to be a long standing financial services expert with vast connections to the deal-makers the minicab firm need to win over if they are to complete what is seen as a difficult IPO. Uber have made significant losses each quarter. The latest Q2 figures ending in June signaled a deficit of £702m over the three month period. However, the company still harbours hope that it’s global potential will attract new investors. The firm based in San Francisco must meet its own self-imposed deadline of an IPO for 2019 or risk a shareholder provision that opens up transfer restrictions on shares possibility creating a frantic and unstable market of buying and selling Uber stock. It is hoped that Chai will help by bringing more than a decade of experience in senior positions at some of the world’s leading publicly traded financial services and insurance companies. He joins Uber from the Chicago-based Warranty Group, an insurance and warranty provider, where he was CEO. Previously, he spent more than five years at CIT Group, where he most recently served as President. Before that, he was Chief Financial Officer of Merrill Lynch & Co.; NYSE Euronext, the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange; and Archipelago Holdings, the first fully electronic stock exchange in the United States. “I’m incredibly excited to bring on someone as experienced and thoughtful as Nelson,” said Dara Khosrowshahi, Uber CEO. “He will be a great partner for me and the entire management team as we move towards becoming a public company.” “Uber is one of the world’s most iconic and exciting technology companies, and I’m honored to join as CFO,” said Chai. “I lookforward to working closely with Dara and team as we build on the company’s strong growth and forward momentum.”