Uber’s London roadblock will be good for the competition

Ride-hailing app Uber has been denied a new licence to operate in London. This is excellent news for rivals. Matthew Partridge reports

Uber cars © Uber

The ban has hit Uber's share price
(Image credit: Uber cars © Uber)

Transport for London (TfL), which regulates traffic in the capital, has put a "roadblock" in front of Uber, says Bloomberg's Nate Lanxon.It has denied the ride-hailing service a new licence to operate in the city, "citing concerns over rider safety and the security of the app".It is especially concerned about a "vulnerability" that lets unauthorised users pick up passengers "under the guise of being a licensed driver". While Uber will be allowed to keep operating while it appeals the verdict (a process "that could take years"), this is a setback in one of the company's biggest markets outside the US.

Subscribe to MoneyWeek

Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE

Get 6 issues free
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/mw70aro6gl1676370748.jpg

Sign up to Money Morning

Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter

Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter

Sign up
Dr Matthew Partridge
Shares editor, MoneyWeek

Matthew graduated from the University of Durham in 2004; he then gained an MSc, followed by a PhD at the London School of Economics.

He has previously written for a wide range of publications, including the Guardian and the Economist, and also helped to run a newsletter on terrorism. He has spent time at Lehman Brothers, Citigroup and the consultancy Lombard Street Research.

Matthew is the author of Superinvestors: Lessons from the greatest investors in history, published by Harriman House, which has been translated into several languages. His second book, Investing Explained: The Accessible Guide to Building an Investment Portfolio, is published by Kogan Page.

As senior writer, he writes the shares and politics & economics pages, as well as weekly Blowing It and Great Frauds in History columns He also writes a fortnightly reviews page and trading tips, as well as regular cover stories and multi-page investment focus features.

Follow Matthew on Twitter: @DrMatthewPartri