Uber Technologies has agreed to acquire an additional 12.5 percent stake in Careem Technologies from UAE telecom operator e& in a $100 million cash transaction, announced through a binding agreement signed on June 1, 2026 and filed as a corporate announcement on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange. The transaction will reduce e&’s ownership in Careem from 50.03 percent to 37.53 percent, effectively shifting majority control of the super app’s technology business back toward Uber in a move that redraws the ownership structure of one of the MENA region’s most consequential digital platforms. The deal remains subject to regulatory approvals and customary closing conditions before it is formally completed. The transaction carries particular historical weight given the arc of Careem’s corporate journey. Founded in Dubai in 2012, Careem evolved from a ride-hailing platform into a regional super app offering services including transportation, food delivery, grocery delivery, digital payments, and other consumer services across multiple markets, before being acquired by Uber in a landmark $3.1 billion transaction completed in 2020, one of the largest technology deals in the Middle East. e& had subsequently acquired a majority interest in Careem Technologies, formerly called Careem Everything App, from Uber for $400 million in December 2023, with Uber retaining full ownership of the ride-hailing operations throughout that period. The June 2026 transaction effectively reverses part of that 2023 arrangement, bringing Uber back into a position of greater structural influence over the broader Careem platform.
Careem’s gross transaction value in core services grew almost five times over the last two years as momentum surged across several segments including food delivery, quick commerce, subscription services, and digital payments, providing the commercial backdrop against which this ownership realignment is taking place. Careem co-founder and CEO Mudassir Sheikha described the move as bringing Careem and Uber back into a closer and deeply familiar alignment, while maintaining e& as a strategic shareholder and long-term partner. For e&, the partial sale was framed as a capital allocation decision tied to its core businesses, reflecting a broader strategy of focusing capital on its core telecommunications, digital services, and technology businesses, while continuing to participate in the future growth of Careem through its retained minority stake.
The ownership structure agreed upon also includes provisions for a future transition. As part of the transaction, e& holds a put option that allows it to require Uber to purchase its remaining Careem shares, while Uber holds a reciprocal call option requiring e& to sell those shares, with both options exercisable between December 1, 2031 and January 31, 2032. This arrangement gives both parties a defined and time-bound route to revisit the ownership question later in the decade, avoiding a full transfer now while creating a structured mechanism for eventual resolution. The framework reflects a practical approach to managing a high-value asset in a market where regulatory, operational, and strategic conditions are still evolving.
For Pakistan and the broader MENA startup ecosystem, the Uber-Careem story carries significance beyond the balance sheet. Careem remains one of the most visible examples of a technology company built in the region that has reached a scale capable of attracting and sustaining global capital at the multi-billion dollar level. Uber bringing its global technology experience and product tools to Careem’s next phase under the revised ownership structure points to a deepening of the operational relationship between the two companies rather than simply a financial rearrangement, suggesting that the platform’s most consequential period of growth across its markets, including Pakistan, may still lie ahead.
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