How Uber Employees Could Get Rich Quick

SAN FRANCISCO, CA -- A deal from a Japanese firm could make employees of the San Francisco-based Uber rich quick, according to a report by The San Francisco Chronicle. The newspaper reported that Softbank Group, Inc. hopes to invest $1 billion into the transportation technology company.

SoftBank, which is headquartered in Toyko, also plans to "buy up to $9 billion worth of stock from existing shareholders — namely early investors and Uber employees who were granted stock options."

"While the vast majority of the money will go to institutional investors, many of the company’s 12,000 employees are likely to jump at the chance to cash out some of their stock options. Others could choose to wait until Uber goes public on Wall Street, which the company says could happen in 2019," the newspaper wrote.

The deal, which was announced last weekend, offers many benefits to the ride-hailing company, including a competitive edge to rival Lyft, according to a Los Angeles Times article.

"A hefty new investment could help persuade Lyft to stop challenging Uber on price, said Evan Rawley, an associate professor at the University of Minnesota who has followed the trajectory of both companies since their beginnings," the Times reported.

Of course, the deal isn't closed yet. In fact, SoftBank made that clear in a statement to the media on Monday.

"If conditions on share price and a minimum of shares are not satisfactory for the SoftBank Group side, there is a possibility the SoftBank Group may not make an investment," the statement read.

--In this July 15, 2015 file photo, an Uber driver sits in his car near the San Francisco International Airport. (Photo by Jeff Chiu/Associated Press)