Uber is reportedly in talks with Dubai’s Careem to merge in Middle East

Adriano Machado | Reuters

The chief executive of Uber Technologies, Dara Khosrowshahi.

Uber Technologies is in preliminary talks with rival Careem to combine their Middle Eastern ride-hailing services, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday, citing three people familiar with the matter.

The companies have discussed several potential deal structures and under one of them, Careem’s current leaders would manage the new combined business while retaining one or both of the companies’ local brands, and another proposal would be Uber acquiring the Middle East ride-hailing app, the report added.

In discussions with Careem, Uber has said that it would need to own more than half of the combined company, if not buy Careem outright, according to the report.

Uber and Careem did not immediately respond to requests for comment.