The board at Uber, which is planning an initial public offering in 2019, made their final concessions to pave the way for the SoftBank deal in early November. The deal, concluded on January 18, includes a large purchase of shares from existing Uber investors and employees at a discounted valuation for the company of $48 billion, a 30 percent drop from Uber's most recent valuation of $68 billion.
KEURIG AND DR. PEPPER MERGER
On January 29th, 2018, Keurig Green Mountain and Dr. Pepper Snapple Group announced an $18.7 billion merger, creating an $11 billion revenue company: Keurig Dr. Pepper. Dr. Pepper Snapple shareholders will receive a cash dividend of $103.75 per share. After the deal was announced, Dr. Pepper Snapple’s shares rose 22% to $117.07, with a market value of $21.6 billion (compared to a market value of $17 billion pre-announcement).
MEITUAN-DIANPING BECOMES 4TH MOST VALUABLE STARTUP
JAWBONE: THE BIGGEST UNICORN DEATH OF 2017
2017 has been a precarious year inundated with challenges for unicorn startups. Whether it be legal lawsuits, executives departures, or valuation markdowns from IPOs, startups have struggled to generate returns for investors. Among 2017’s most disastrous failures, Jawbone tops this list after filing for liquidation in July