Dive Brief:

• Uber’s VP of strategic finance Balaji Krishnamurthy will step into the role of CFO effective Feb. 16, succeeding finance chief Prashanth Mahendra-Rajah, the rideshare company announced Wednesday, along with its Q4 earnings report.
• “Mr. Mahendra-Rajah’s separation will be treated as a qualifying termination for purposes of the Company’s Amended and Restated 2019 Executive Severance Plan,” the company said in the Wednesday filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Mahendra-Rajah will continue serve as a senior finance advisor and will report to CEO Dara Khosrowshahi for a period ending July 1, according to the filing. 
• The leadership change comes as the San Francisco-based company continues to push ahead with expansion plans for its robotaxi and autonomous vehicle [AV] offerings. The company, which also reported a 22% year-over-year jump in gross bookings for the quarter, is entering its 2026 with “a clear path to becoming the largest facilitator of AV trips in the world,” Khosrowshahi said in a statement included in its earnings release.

Dive Insight:

“For those who don’t know Balaji, he is trusted by investors, knows Uber’s business inside and out, and is a brilliant, decisive strategist,” Khosrowshahi said in a statement included in the filing. “He has worked closely with me and our management team for years, and I am thrilled for him to step up as CFO as we kick off another big year for Uber.”

A six-year Uber veteran, Krishnamurthy joined the company in November of 2019 as a senior manager of investor relations and has often advocated for the future of the company’s AV strategy on social media. In a Dec. 10 post on X, he noted the company expects to bring its AV experience to over 10 U.S. cities by the end of this year. 

In a statement included in its earnings release Wednesday, Krishnamurthy pointed to “solid momentum” by the rideshare, noting Uber remains on track to hit its three-year growth and profit outlook. 

“With large and growing free cash flows, over the coming years we will invest with discipline across a multitude of opportunities, including positioning Uber to win in an AV future,” Krishnamurthy said. 

This is a developing story. Please see CFO Dive for updates.