Uber’s fall could postpone payday for founder Kalanick

San Francisco: A twist in the way shares were apportioned in Uber Technologies Inc.’s initial offering may delay a $1.2 billion (Dh4.4 billion) payday for founder Travis Kalanick and other early investors, unless the stock snaps out of its funk.

Banks that managed the listing hold an option to buy 27 million Uber shares from the group, which also includes co-founder Garrett Camp, Benchmark Capital and the SoftBank Vision Fund, at the IPO price. They’re likely to pass on that option – called a “greenshoe” – if shares can be had in the open market at lower prices.

After pricing Thursday at $45 each, shares of the ride-hailing company opened at $42 then slipped in their first day of public trading to $41.57 at the close, with 186.1 million shares changing hands. All of the proceeds went to the company, which finished with a $69.7 billion market capitalisation.

Banks can use the buying power from a greenshoe to reduce the impact of heavy selling. Uber’s option is a bit unusual in that shares would have been purchased from early investors, rather than Uber itself.

Those same holders will still need to wait another six months before selling more shares, thanks to lockup agreements.