Why does Mark Cuban regret missing out on Uber? ‘Shark Tank’ star did not invest $250K in company when he had the chance
DALLAS, TEXAS: 'Shark Tank' investor billionaire Mark Cuban has one regret to this day despite all the wealth he has amassed. He would have had more to spare had he accepted an offer in 2009 and made a $250,000 investment in Uber.
His investment would have grown to over $2 billion by now. The entrepreneur, in an episode of Kevin Hart's Peacock talk show 'Hart to Heart', spoke about the time he was presented with the opportunity to inject funds into the then-startup.
Cuban has since been on the lookout for such disruptive startups that have the potential to change the landscape of their respective industries. He has made it a point to never again miss out on investing in similarly lucrative enterprises.
Mark Cuban had the opportunity to invest in Uber in 2009
Back in 2009, Uber co-founder Travis Kalanick approached Cuban with his idea of a startup. The two had previously known each other as Cuban had invested $1.7 million in Kalanick's startup, Red Swoosh, a peer-to-peer networking startup.
Once it was sold to cloud services organization Akamai, Cuban managed to make a decent amount of money on his investment. However, in the case of Uber, Cuban was a bit apprehensive about the outcome.
As Kevin Hart explained his own experience and the opportunity he passed up of investing in Uber, the actor referred to the startup idea as "murderville" and Cubah could not help but agree.
Cuban was also concerned about the regulatory pains that might impede Uber's growth and warned Kalanick against the taxi commissions, which had the potential to put Uber out of business.
Owing to a combination of these factors, Cuban ultimately decided not to invest in Uber. Needless to say, it was that one decision that he immensely regrets now.
Why does 'Shark Tank' star Mark Cuban regret not investing $250,000 in Uber?
Kalanick had come to Cuban asking for an investment of $250,000 while Uber was valued at 10 million. The figures indicate that making this investment would have given Cuban 2.5 percent of the company.
Over the years, Cuban's initial investment of $250,000 would have grown into $2.28 billion by now as Uber's market capitalization is $91.32 billion as of August 20.
The valuation of the company was the main bone of contention between the startup owner and the investor. Cuban states that he was prepared to make the investment had the company been valued at 5 million.
However, he mentioned that he never heard back from Uber again and guessed that they might have some other investor to replace him. Since then, Kalanick has never again returned to Cuban for an investment.
What is Mark Cuban's net worth?
According to Forbes, Cuban's net worth is estimated to be $5.1 billion. He had sold broadcast.com to Yahoo for a whopping $5.6 billion before the dot-com bubble burst. This is one of the chief factors which contributed to his wealth.
Cuban is estimated to have invested a total of $19.85 million in companies that have appeared on 'Shark Tank'.
Who is 'Shark Tank' investor Mark Cuban?
Mark Cuban is a 65-year-old American businessman and investor. He is the owner of the Dallas Mavericks and has appeared as one of the main sharks on ABC's hit reality show 'Shark Tank'.
He graduated from the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University. Apart from his business ventures, he is also noted for his philanthropy.