FRANKFURT — Uber has offered more than 1 billion euros ($1.19 billion) to buy Daimler and BMW’s ride-hailing company Free Now, according to German business publication Manager Magazin.
While Daimler is ready to sell, BMW CEO Oliver Zipse is wavering about selling up, and is instead open to offering Uber a stake, the magazine said in a report on Wednesday.
Bloomberg reported in September that Uber was considering purchasing the service to boost its market share in Europe and Latin America, citing people with knowledge of the matter.
Daimler and BMW merged their mobility operations last year and created a joint venture called Your Now, which consists of five businesses, including Free Now. The venture’s activities also include much smaller operations dubbed Park Now and the car-sharing platform Share Now.
Free Now used to operate as MyTaxi and has integrated ride-hailing apps including France’s Kapten, Greece’s Beat and Romania’s Clever Taxi.
