Uber has filed preliminary documents to take the company public in 2019, with a goal of debuting in March or April, sources told The Wall Street Journal.
The ride-hailing company’s reported plans for an IPO come shortly after its rival, Lyft, said it had taken similar steps. The two companies are racing to go public next year. Uber declined to comment on the Wall Street Journal report.
Last summer, Uber’s founding CEO Travis Kalanick stepped down after a series of scandals, making room for Dara Khosrowshahi, then CEO of Expedia, to take the helm.
Uber has been on something of an apology tour since then, taking a more conciliatory approach to regulators under Khosrowshahi’s leadership. He has made going public a key goal from the outset.
In addition to continued investments in autonomous vehicles, Uber has been focusing on expanding beyond ride-hailing to other mobility services. That was the impetus for the company’s acquisition of bike-sharing startup JUMP in April. Uber is also reportedly in talks with scooter startups Lime and Bird about a possible acquisition.
