Hundreds of Careem employees are set to become millionaires overnight after the Dubai-based ride-hailing app was acquired by Uber Technologies this week.
Dubbed as "the biggest ever tech deal in the Middle East," the acquisition will see 75 members of Careem's staff become millionaires in US dollars and another 200 members become millionaires in Emirati dirhams.
FYI: One million dirhams amounts to $272,200.
This comes as the employees' shares in the company will be bought as a result of the deal.
Uber Technologies has agreed to buy its Middle East rival, Careem, for $3.1 billion, the two companies announced earlier this week. The payout will be executed through a $1.4 billion cash portion, along with $1.7 billion worth of notes that are convertible to Uber stock.
According to The National, all 4,000 Careem employees have stock options in the company and their shares will be acquired as part of the deal. However, this does not apply to Careem's drivers, as they are not employed by the company.
About 275 Careem workers, including executives, developers, and engineers, will thus receive one million dirhams or more for their shares, turning them into millionaires.
Wamda Chairman Fadi Ghandour believes the "liquidity event" will encourage former Careem employees to become entrepreneurs, innovators, and investors.
"What this means for the ecosystem is that so many massively talented people will leave their work at Careem and become new entrepreneurs, innovating and wanting to replicate what they saw at Careem, or become co-founders of already established startups or invest in startups," he explained.
The Uber-Careem deal has caused quite the buzz over the past couple of days, with experts weighing in on the repercussions of the acquisition.
Careem operates across the Middle East, North Africa, Pakistan, and Turkey, while Uber is available in 60 countries worldwide. The recently-announced agreement means Uber will have monopoly in the region, leading to a likely increase in fares, according to Gulf News.
As per the agreement, Careem will become a wholly-owned subsidiary of Uber, but the former will operate independently and retain its name, app, and brand. Careem will have its own board, which will include representatives from Uber, and its founder Mudassir Sheikha will continue to serve as its CEO.
"Uber has achieved great success in the region and shares our ambitions to have a positive impact in the communities we serve. We're excited about what we can achieve together. We are still Careem, driven by our purpose – to simplify and improve lives and create an awesome organisation that inspires," Careem's statement reads.
The transaction is set to be concluded in the first quarter of 2020.