Careem acquired by US-based rival Uber for $3.1 billion

Careem, the first unicorn of the Middle East, was acquired by Uber in a historic deal of $3.1 billion. Of the total amount, $1.4bn will be paid by Uber in cash, while the rest of the $1.7bn will be in notes convertible to Uber stocks. As Uber gears up for its IPO at the expected value of $120bn, the deal is set to make many of Careem’s employees dollar millionaires.

200 of Careem’s core staff will receive at least AED 1 million in the stock option programme, while 75 will receive more than USD 1 million. While the rest, from software engineers to developers and executives based in other countries, all 4000 of Careem’s core employees (excluding the drivers, also known as ‘captains’) have stock options, which will be bought as part of the acquisition deal.

The acquisition is still pending regulatory approval, which is expected to be completed by the first quarter of 2020. Read more about the deal which has made many of Careem’s employees millionaires here.