Business Extra

Business Extra: Ankur Shah, ex-CFO of Careem, on being part of a $3.1 billion unicorn

How can you successfully scale your start-up to achieve a $1 billion valuation? Careem's ex-CFO explains how

Mustafa Alrawi and Kelsey Warner

March 12, 2020

For any tech start-up the aim is reaching a $1 billion valuation - but how do you get there and how hard is the path to unicorn status? We find out from someone who has done it. Hosts Mustafa Alrawi and Kelsey Warner are joined by Ankur Shah, who was formerly the chief financial officer of ride-sharing company Careem and departed this year once the $3.1 billion sale of the company to Uber had been completed. In this episode: Ankur Shah on Careem (0m 35s) What can start-ups do today? (14m 09s) Headlines (26m 45s) Read more on our website:

• Uber completes $3.1 billion deal to buy Dubai's Careem

• Business Extra: What the Uber-Careem deal means for tech in the UAE and the Middle East

• Global oil demand to contract for the first time in more than a decade, IEA says

• 'Back to basics' approach helping Etihad Airways face industry challenges

• Android phones lose trade-in value faster than iPhones, says report

WHAT IS A BLACK HOLE?

1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull

2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight

3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge

4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own

5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed

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Directors: Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi

Stars: Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah

Rating: 4/5

'Moonshot'

Director: Chris Winterbauer

Stars: Lana Condor and Cole Sprouse 

Rating: 3/5