How SoftBank's six-year, $14.9 billion bet on Didi turned sour

Didi rushed into a flotation partly because it was under pressure from shareholders impatient to exit from their investments. PHOTO: REUTERS
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BEIJING (CAIXIN GLOBAL) - Like many money-losing tech start-ups, dominant Chinese ride-hailing company Didi Chuxing has relied heavily on private equity financing since its inception in 2012.

Through 23 rounds of financing, Didi raised more than US$35 billion (S$47.3 billion) from nearly 100 investors, valuing the company as high as US$62 billion in an August 2020 fund-raising round.

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