JZ

Jay Z Invests $105 Million in Uber for Private Jets

One of the biggest business success stories for 2016 was the rise of Uber, with millions of people now opting for the cheaper form of car transportation over cabs.

However, we mustn’t forget that the rich and elite of the world need a cost-effective mode of transport so they can fly between holiday islands quickly and conveniently – the common hire car will simply not do!

Thankfully, artists such as Jay Z exist.

The rapper/entrepreneur/business, man has expanded his empire into multiple territories over the past two decades, perhaps most famously with his uh… disastrous TIDAL streaming service.

However, if the world of music streaming is beyond his control (Apple seems to have caught onto something here), his latest investment fits the decadent image of hip-hop like a glove, with the rapper cashing in on the new JetSmarter service, an Uber-like service for private jets.

According to Tech Crunch, the service has raised $105 million in Series C funding, despite having a pre-value of $1.5 billion should the service want to expand globally.

According to CEO Sergey Petrossov, the funding will be used to expand the service into Asia and Latin America, with the app currently operating in select points in the US only.

The app allows clients to book their own private jet via the JetShuttle service and even hire an entire plane if they have the funds; however, unlike regular Uber not just anybody can download the app and book a flight to the Bahamas.

People wishing to use the app will have to undergo a “small background check” as well as fork out a $15,000 “core” membership fee.

While Jay-Z was an early backer of the project, new investors include Abu Dhabi-based equity fund JetEdge and London’s KZ Capital.

“We scale from the community” said Mr Petrossov. “We use predictive maps and algorithms to find where the demand is, so that we will never over-supply the market, and can just meet the amount of demand we have.”

Fingers crossed the app doesn’t meet the same fate as previous Jay-Z investments.

Image: HOT 97.1 SVG