Hidebound Banks Ride Uber, Hoping to Manage I.P.O.

(p. A1) Wall Street banks can be hidebound in their ways: insisting on suits and ties and handing out BlackBerries after everyone else has moved on to the iPhone. But if there is one thing that can push even the most conservative bank into the future, it is the prospect of business.
The latest reminder came this week when JPMorgan Chase announced that it would reimburse all of its employees for rides taken with Uber — offering access to “Uber’s expanding presence and seamless experience,” the company said in a news release.
JPMorgan made its decision long after other parts of corporate America were already hailing cars through the California start-up. But banks have recently shown a fondness for the service — with Goldman making the company part of its official travel policy in late May and Morgan Stanley putting out its own news release about its Uber use late last year.
Bank experts were quick to note that these moves come as the banks are jockeying to win a coveted spot managing Uber’s initial public offering — one that is not yet scheduled but that is assumed to be coming in the not-too-distant future. The I.P.O. for Uber, whose fund-raising so far has pegged its valuation at $50 billion, will most likely be the blockbuster I.P.O. in whatever year it takes place.

For the full story, see:
NATHANIEL POPPER. “An Uber I.P.O. Ahead, and Suddenly Bankers Are Using Uber. Coincidence?” The New York Times (Fri., JULY 10, 2015): B3.
(Note: bracketed date added.)
(Note: the online version of the story has the date JULY 9, 2015 and has the title “An Uber I.P.O. Looms, and Suddenly Bankers Are Using Uber. Coincidence?”)

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