*By Jacqueline Corba*
Lyft just closed a massive new round of funding, effectively doubling its valuation in just one year to more than $15 billion.
Andrew Hawkins, Senior Transportation Reporter at The Verge, said this could signal that the ride-sharing start-up is looking to beat Uber in the race to go public.
"People should be keeping an eye on Lyft in the earlier half of 2019 to see what movements it makes to signal a public offering," Hawkins told Cheddar Wednesday.
Lyft had been thought to be on the IPO docket for this year, and was [reportedly close](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-lyft-ipo-exclusive/exclusive-lyft-close-to-selecting-ipo-adviser-sources-idUSKCN1C3114?utm_source=applenews) to selecting bankers for the offering as recently as September. While the departure of its former COO in November appeared to put those plans on hold, the company signed up a new operating chief earlier this year.
Meanwhile, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi [said in May that his company is on track to go public in 2019.](https://www.cnbc.com/2018/05/30/uber-ceo-on-ipo-plans-and-warren-buffett.html)
Fidelity led Lyft's latest $600 million round, which also included hedge fund Senator Investment Group. It got another $200 million earlier this year and ended 2017 with a total of $1.5 billion from Google's venture arm CapitalG.
While the company's new valuation is still only a fraction of Uber's $69 billion total worth, Hawkins said Lyft was able to capitalize on its rival's struggles.
But the company itself said it would stay true to its core mission.
"We will double down on our values, and invest in the vision that cities should be built around people, not cars," Lyft said in a [blog post] (https://blog.lyft.com/posts/2018/6/27/lyft-raises-new-capital-and-continues-momentum) Wednesday. "We are committed to delivering the best possible experience for all members of the Lyft community."
For the full segment, [click here.](https://cheddar.com/videos/lyft-raises-massive-funding-round-doubles-valuation)
Joe Cecela, Dream Exchange CEO, explains how they are aiming to form the first minority-controlled company to operate an exchange in U.S. history. Watch!
A Michigan judge is putting sponges in the hands of shoplifters and ordering them to wash cars in a Walmart parking lot when spring weather arrives. Genesee County Judge Jeffrey Clothier hopes the unusual form of community service discourages people from stealing from Walmart. The judge also wants to reward shoppers with free car washes. Clothier says he began ordering “Walmart wash” sentences this week for shoplifting at the store in Grand Blanc Township. He believes 75 to 100 people eventually will be ordered to wash cars this spring. Clothier says he will be washing cars alongside them when the time comes.
The State Department had been in talks with Elon Musk’s Tesla company to buy armored electric vehicles, but the plans have been put on hold by the Trump administration after reports emerged about a potential $400 million purchase. A State Department spokesperson said the electric car company owned by Musk was the only one that expressed interest back in May 2024. The deal with Tesla was only in its planning phases but it was forecast to be the largest contract of the year. It shows how some of his wealth has come and was still expected to come from taxpayers.
At 100 years old, the Goodyear Blimp is an ageless star in the sky. The 246-foot-long airship will be in the background of the Daytona 500 — flying roughly 1,500 feet above Daytona International Speedway, actually — to celebrate its greatest anniversary tour. Even though remote camera technologies are improving regularly and changing the landscape of aerial footage, the blimp continues to carve out a niche. At Daytona, with the usual 40-car field racing around a 2½-mile superspeedway, views from the blimp aptly provide the scope of the event.
