After Ofo, Another Chinese Bicycle Sharing Startup Mobike To Enter India in Next Few Weeks

After the launch of China's bicycle sharing startup Ofo, in December, another similar startup from China is all set to foray into India. According to a report, app-based bicycle-sharing platform Mobike is on verge of making its entry into the Indian market in the next few weeks and is in advanced discussions with authorities in various cities to start services.

Mobike, which offers services in 16 countries across over 200 cities, was acquired by Chinese firm Meituan Dianping for an estimated USD 2.7 billion last month.

"We are in advanced stages of discussions with authorities of various cities in India and are also looking at smart city projects. We want to be a part of the India story. We are looking at launching our services here in the next couple of weeks," Mobike India CEO Vibhor Jain told PTI. These cities include Nagpur, Delhi, Bengaluru, Pune and Ahmedabad, among others, he added.

Jain said the company is also in discussions with corporate parks and educational institutes in the country for introducing its platform.

He, however, declined to comment on the amount of funds designated for the Indian market or the number of bikes that will be made available for Indian users.

Mobike will compete with the likes of ofo and Olas Pedal in India. Alibaba-backed ofo has already clocked 1.1 million rides in India by the end of March this year with operations in seven cities, including Indore, Ahmedabad, Coimbatore and Pune.

[caption id="attachment_124408" align="aligncenter" width="995"] Mobike[/caption]

In December last year, Ola said it was piloting bicycles on various campuses in the country to promote use of environment-friendly means of transportation. Prior to this, Zoomcar had too launched its bicycle-rental service PEDL, in October last year.

InMobi co-founder Amit Gupta recently stepped down to launch its new venture which too is bicycle sharing startup Yulu.

Coming back to Mobike, its platform has nine million bicycles, which sees about 30 million rides being taken every day. The 2-year-old Chinese startup has about 200 million registered users and is present in 16 countries, including the US, the UK, Israel, Germany, France, South Korea and Chile.

Its Internet of Things (IoT)-powered bicycles are equipped with GPS and proprietary smart-lock technology that enable users to find a bike near them, reserve and unlock it using Mobikes app. After reaching their destination, the user can park the bike in any bike-friendly location and lock it, automatically making the bike available to the next rider.

The bicycles feature chainless shaft transmission, have non-puncture airless tires, a lightweight anti-rust aluminum frame, and can offer an estimated four years of repair-free cycling.

Jain said that, apart from providing an alternative mode of transport for the last mile connectivity, the insights from ridership patterns can help public authorities plan for future infrastructure development.

Jain explained that the company is focussing on last mile connectivity, say to the nearest metro or train station.

"There are various use cases for using our services. Some have adopted it for health reasons (cycling) or see it as an independent mode of transport as they dont have to depend on someone to drive them. Some dont want to wait for a cab to show up and dont mind riding 3-4 kms," he said.

He added that the company is also working on various cashless payment modules, both for pay-as-you-go and subscription options.

Mobike had raised capital from Tencent, Xiaomi, Sequoia China and Singaporean sovereign fund Temasek among others, and a $215 million Series D round of its own in January 2017. This was followed by a whopping $85 million in additional capital via strategic investments from Temasek and Foxconn.

It is interesting to note here that India, the country with the second largest population just behind China, has still not been able to capitalise the big potential that the space holds. Though there are many startups trying to make a mark in the space in the country, none has been able to achieve success on the same scale as China's Ofo and Mobike.

Ofo Raises Whopping $866 Million in Latest Funding Round Led by Alibaba

ofo, the world first and largest station-free bike-sharing platform, announced a new $866 million round of funding led by Alibaba Group, with participation from Haofeng Group, Tianhe Capital, Ant Financial and Junli Capital. The strategic financing presents the highest funding record in the bike-sharing industry and marks a new era for operational efficiency of the bike-sharing system.

As a precedent of asset mobilization in the bike-sharing industry, ofo uses a combination of debt and equity financing for this round. ofo will drive long-term success independently with the continuing support of leading investors.

Dai Wei, founder and CEO of ofo said: “As the global leader in the bike-sharing sector, ofo has been transitioning from a phase of rapid growth to a stage of high-quality development. ofo will continue to put our customers first and lead the bike-sharing industry with technological innovation and efficient operations."

According to the recent industry report, ofo has already achieved dominant market place globally. The service improves the urban transport environment by reducing traffic congestion, saving energy and promoting better living. It is expected that the global number of shared bike users will increase to 1 billion in the next two years.

To date, ofo has operations in over 250 cities across 21 countries alongside widespread usage by over 200 million global users with more than 6 billion efficient, convenient and green rides, totaling to 32 million rides per day.

In July 2017, ofo has completed Series E funding of US$700 million, becoming the world’s biggest and most valued bike-sharing company.

ofo has also partnered with the UN Development Programme to achieve the Global Sustainability Goals and launched a new partnership with Rihanna’s Clara Lionel Foundation, in which ofo donated bicycles to girls living in Malawi in need of a safe way to get to school.

As part of the initiative, ofo will also donate the income on the 17th day of every month to celebrate the 17 Sustainable Development Goals.

So far, ofo has entered 21 countries: China, Singapore, UK, US, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Thailand, Austria, Japan, Korea Russia, the Czech Republic, Italy, the Netherlands, Australia, Spain, Portugal and Israel, Hungary, India and France.

ofo has started operation in more than 50 cities with more than 100,000 bikes outside China. The total number of rides has surpassed 10 million.

In India, Ofo launched its operations in December last year and in January this year tied up with Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) to support the Pune Cycle Plan -- a comprehensive bicycle master plan for integrated city-wide cycle tracks across Pune. Thereafter, in same month launched its pilot of bicycle sharing services in 7 cities i.e. Indore, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Delhi, Pune, Coimbatore, and Chennai.

Bicycle Sharing in India - Current Scenerio

Bike-sharing has become a new hotbed in India as the market is already occupied by three local players -- Ola with its Ola Pedals, Zoomcar and recently announced Yulu.

In October, Zoomcar has too launched its bicycle-rental service PEDL, while Ola just launched Ola Pedals on pilot basis. Meanwhile, InMobi co-founder Amit Gupta recently stepped down to launch its new venture which too is bicycle sharing startup Yulu.

Chinese Bicycle Sharing Startup Ofo Launches Multiple Pilots Across 7 Indian Cities

ofo, the world’s first dock less bicycle-sharing platform operated via a mobile app, and the largest bicycle-sharing company in the world, kicked off the year with some major inroads in India by signing MoUs with the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) and Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation (CCMC), followed by an ongoing series of pilot launches of bicycle sharing services in 7 cities i.e. Indore, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Delhi, Pune, Coimbatore, and Chennai.



With urban mobility emerging as a major civic issue and more and more Indian cities aspiring for smarter cities, government bodies are striving to reduce environmental impact, improve public transport and the overall quality of life. ofo aims to support Indian cities in this mission by advancing the culture of bike sharing as a sustainable mode of local transportation with its hassle free dockless bicycling technology.

Furthering its aim of helping India move towards greener transportation, ofo has been launching several pilot projects. While this has involved ofo teaming up with selected gated communities and institutions in supporting their cycling infrastructure on a campus-scale for now, it plans to gradually scale up. The aim for ofo is to be one of the preferred modes of transportation within Indian cities for first and last mile commute, contributing to lower carbon emissions and better health for commuters and city dwellers alike.

Few days back, Ofo has also signed MoU with Pune city's municipal corporation to support the Pune Cycle Plan -- a comprehensive bicycle master plan for integrated city-wide cycle tracks across Pune.

Rajarshi Sahai, Director of Public Policy & Communications, ofo said: “Through these localised launches we look forward to providing people with a taste of an ‘easy-to-use’ bicycle-sharing experience and educate them about various benefits associated with cycling. With overcrowded cities and unprecedented pollution levels, India is ripe for a cycling revolution and we wish to aid that by providing a healthier, quicker, and greener alternative to motor vehicles.” He further added, “Our bicycles are technology enabled and accessible via our app that supports more than 32 million daily rides. In India, we will be supported by the popular wallet Paytm to ensure seamless transactions for our users. Global quality standards ensure our bicycles are light, robust and a joy to ride.”

Kiran Vasireddy, COO - Paytm said, "Building a sustainable low emission last-mile transportation system & addressing congestion issues is a key need in our country. We are excited to partner with ofo Bikes to power seamless mobile payments for its bike sharing service in India. Paytm is committed to building the best payments infrastructure in India & we are happy to bring the latest payment innovations in the public transportation domain. This partnership will make it a lot more convenient for citizens to access ofo's short distance transportation solutions."

The ofo bike sharing program comes at the back of our vision to improve lives of the community and the environment, by reducing carbon emissions and traffic congestion in the long run. ofo believes that a growing culture of cycling will help in tackling pervasive motorization that has turned rush-hour roadways in fast-growing cities into virtual parking lots and a generator of smoke and pollution.

Till date, ofo has operations in over 250 cities across 20 countries alongside widespread usage by over 200 million global users with more than 6 billion efficient, convenient and green rides, growing by 32 million rides per day.

In July 2017, ofo has completed Series E funding of US$700 million, becoming the world’s biggest and most valued bike-sharing company.

Bicycle Sharing in India - Current Scenerio

Bike-sharing has become a new hotbed in India as the market is already occupied by three local players -- Ola with its Ola Pedals, Zoomcar and recently announced Yulu.

In October, Zoomcar has too launched its bicycle-rental service PEDL, while Ola just launched Ola Pedals on pilot basis. Meanwhile, InMobi co-founder Amit Gupta recently stepped down to launch its new venture which too is bicycle sharing startup Yulu.

Chinese Bicycle Sharing Unicorn Ofo Signs MoU with Pune Municipal Corporation

After launching its India operations last month, China's Ofo, the world’s first and largest station-free app based bike-sharing platform, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) to support the Pune Cycle Plan -- a comprehensive bicycle master plan for integrated city-wide cycle tracks across Pune.

Prepared with support from the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of India, the Pune Cycle Plan sets out to create the necessary infrastructure for proper cycle tracks, a city-wide cycle network, seamless public sharing bicycle schemes and development of cycle promotion activities for encouraging the use of this eco-friendly mode of transport.

Mobility has become a major civic issue in Pune recently as facilities for public commuting have not kept pace with the city’s growth. As per PMC’s Environment Status Report 2016-17, with 700 private vehicles being added to the roads every day, the city’s vehicle population is now equal to its human population. This rapid rise in vehicular traffic is leading to air pollution, health problems, accidents, and wastage of time in traffic congestion. Recognizing this, the PMC has come up with the Pune Cycle Plan as part of its Comprehensive Mobility Plan (CMP).

Rajarshi Sahai, Director of Public Policy & Communications, ofo said, “We are delighted to partner with the city of Pune. We wish to improve its quality of life in the city by providing a healthier, quicker, and greener alternative to motor vehicles. Our station-free bike-sharing concept has improved the transportation in cities across the world. Our mission is to solve the ‘last mile’ transportation problem in India’s urban areas and we see immense potential in Pune for ofo’s convenient, affordable and low carbon way of travel. He further added, “Pune’s approach to have global bicycle sharing operators bring in the bicycles, while the city builds infrastructure and parking to meet deployment is an example in role clarity for public and private sector. We are delighted by the support we have received here and we do plan to deploy in Pune soon.”

Speaking on the initiative Mr. Kunal Kumar, Commissioner of the Pune Municipal Corporation, said, “We are getting closer to our vision of sustainable mobility and healthy living in Pune. Along with partnerships for public bicycle sharing with partners like ofo, we are creating infrastructure where cycling is safe, attractive, comfortable and the travel mode of choice. As more people switch to bikes from cars for short-distance travel, apart from getting exercise, they will also help reduce traffic congestion, fuel consumption and air pollution.”

Notably, a few competition companies to Ofo is already there and some are about to launch as, in October 2016, Zoomcar had launched its bicycle-rental service PEDL, while Ola just launched Ola Pedals on pilot basis. Meanwhile, InMobi co-founder Amit Gupta recently stepped down to launch its new venture which too is bicycle sharing startup Yulu.

Till date, ofo has operations in over 250 cities across 20 countries alongside widespread usage by over 200 million global users with more than 6 billion efficient, convenient and green rides. This innovative bike sharing platform requires no fixed docking stations, thus providing significant flexibility for user to find and return bikes.

In Oct 2017, ofo joined hands with C40 – a network of world's leading megacities – to establish joint efforts in tackling pollution & climate change, and contribute to research focused on healthy livable cities.

In July 2017, ofo completed Series E funding of US$700 million led by Alibaba, Hony Capital and CITIC Private Equity, becoming the world’s biggest and most valued bike-sharing company.

Founded in 2014, ofo is the world’s first and largest “station-free” bike-sharing platform operated via an online mobile application.

The development of ofo platform was inspired by the concept of sharing economy and facilitated by smartphone technology, aiming to tackle “the last mile” challenge in urban areas.

As of today, ofo is ramping up operations in over 250 cities across 20 countries. It generates 32 million transactions daily and has provided over 200 million global users with 6 billion efficient, convenient and green rides, which have reduced carbon emissions by over 3.24 million tons of PM2.5 emissions.

From April to June of 2017 alone, users worldwide accumulated a riding distance of over 1.2 billion kilometers, reducing 84 million liters of fuel consumption and 265,000 tons of carbon dioxide.

ofo’s bike-sharing system requires no fixed docking stations, providing significant flexibility for users to find and return bikes.

As more people switch to ofo bikes from cars for short-distance travel, they do only not get more exercise by riding, but also helps reduces traffic congestion, fuel consumption and thus air pollution.

In July 2017, ofo has completed Series E funding of US$700 million, becoming the world’s biggest and most valued bike-sharing company.

Chinese Bicycle Sharing Unicorn Ofo Signs MoU with Pune Municipal Corporation

After launching its India operations last month, China's Ofo, the world’s first and largest station-free app based bike-sharing platform, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) to support the Pune Cycle Plan -- a comprehensive bicycle master plan for integrated city-wide cycle tracks across Pune.

Prepared with support from the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of India, the Pune Cycle Plan sets out to create the necessary infrastructure for proper cycle tracks, a city-wide cycle network, seamless public sharing bicycle schemes and development of cycle promotion activities for encouraging the use of this eco-friendly mode of transport.

Mobility has become a major civic issue in Pune recently as facilities for public commuting have not kept pace with the city’s growth. As per PMC’s Environment Status Report 2016-17, with 700 private vehicles being added to the roads every day, the city’s vehicle population is now equal to its human population. This rapid rise in vehicular traffic is leading to air pollution, health problems, accidents, and wastage of time in traffic congestion. Recognizing this, the PMC has come up with the Pune Cycle Plan as part of its Comprehensive Mobility Plan (CMP).

Rajarshi Sahai, Director of Public Policy & Communications, ofo said, “We are delighted to partner with the city of Pune. We wish to improve its quality of life in the city by providing a healthier, quicker, and greener alternative to motor vehicles. Our station-free bike-sharing concept has improved the transportation in cities across the world. Our mission is to solve the ‘last mile’ transportation problem in India’s urban areas and we see immense potential in Pune for ofo’s convenient, affordable and low carbon way of travel. He further added, “Pune’s approach to have global bicycle sharing operators bring in the bicycles, while the city builds infrastructure and parking to meet deployment is an example in role clarity for public and private sector. We are delighted by the support we have received here and we do plan to deploy in Pune soon.”

Speaking on the initiative Mr. Kunal Kumar, Commissioner of the Pune Municipal Corporation, said, “We are getting closer to our vision of sustainable mobility and healthy living in Pune. Along with partnerships for public bicycle sharing with partners like ofo, we are creating infrastructure where cycling is safe, attractive, comfortable and the travel mode of choice. As more people switch to bikes from cars for short-distance travel, apart from getting exercise, they will also help reduce traffic congestion, fuel consumption and air pollution.”

Notably, a few competition companies to Ofo is already there and some are about to launch as, in October 2016, Zoomcar had launched its bicycle-rental service PEDL, while Ola just launched Ola Pedals on pilot basis. Meanwhile, InMobi co-founder Amit Gupta recently stepped down to launch its new venture which too is bicycle sharing startup Yulu.

Till date, ofo has operations in over 250 cities across 20 countries alongside widespread usage by over 200 million global users with more than 6 billion efficient, convenient and green rides. This innovative bike sharing platform requires no fixed docking stations, thus providing significant flexibility for user to find and return bikes.

In Oct 2017, ofo joined hands with C40 – a network of world's leading megacities – to establish joint efforts in tackling pollution & climate change, and contribute to research focused on healthy livable cities.

In July 2017, ofo completed Series E funding of US$700 million led by Alibaba, Hony Capital and CITIC Private Equity, becoming the world’s biggest and most valued bike-sharing company.

Founded in 2014, ofo is the world’s first and largest “station-free” bike-sharing platform operated via an online mobile application.

The development of ofo platform was inspired by the concept of sharing economy and facilitated by smartphone technology, aiming to tackle “the last mile” challenge in urban areas.

As of today, ofo is ramping up operations in over 250 cities across 20 countries. It generates 32 million transactions daily and has provided over 200 million global users with 6 billion efficient, convenient and green rides, which have reduced carbon emissions by over 3.24 million tons of PM2.5 emissions.

From April to June of 2017 alone, users worldwide accumulated a riding distance of over 1.2 billion kilometers, reducing 84 million liters of fuel consumption and 265,000 tons of carbon dioxide.

ofo’s bike-sharing system requires no fixed docking stations, providing significant flexibility for users to find and return bikes.

As more people switch to ofo bikes from cars for short-distance travel, they do only not get more exercise by riding, but also helps reduces traffic congestion, fuel consumption and thus air pollution.

In July 2017, ofo has completed Series E funding of US$700 million, becoming the world’s biggest and most valued bike-sharing company.

China's Bicycle Sharing Startup Ofo Launches in India

In October, we reported that China's bicycle sharing startup Ofo is about to enter Indian market and today, if a report by VCCircle is to be believed, the time has come that the startup has finally entered India.

Citing a social media posts by Ofo's senior executives, the report further states that the startup will launch its services starting with Chennai.

Ofo will import bikes into India and proposes to offer its services for free and waive deposits till the year-end, Chinese state news agency Xinhua reported, citing the company.

Bike-sharing has become a new hotbed in India as the market is already occupied by three local players -- Ola with its Ola Pedals, Zoomcar and recently announced Yulu.

In October, Zoomcar has too launched its bicycle-rental service PEDL, while Ola just launched Ola Pedals on pilot basis. Meanwhile, InMobi co-founder Amit Gupta recently stepped down to launch its new venture which too is bicycle sharing startup Yulu.

In July, Alibaba Group, along with cab aggregator Didi Chuxing and DST Global, had pumped in $700 million in Ofo, powering its global expansion in the face of tough competition at home. A Reuters report had said that Ofo was also in talks with SoftBank for a $1-billion funding round.

Zoomcar To Offer Bicycles For Rent At Rs 20 Per Hour

While cycling might not be that famous a sport among the current generation right now, it is important to bring that trend back considering the traffic and pollution situation that our cities are facing and the health issues we’re piling on because of our busy schedules.

Gauging the opportunity that lies ahead, several firms have come up with bicycle-sharing services of their own. Bangalore-based self-drive car rental startup Zoomcar is one such startup. The startup recently launched a tech-enabled bicycle-sharing service called Pedl.

After months of planning and testing out the model, Zoomcar has finally launched India's first app-based cycle renting platform. Though the startup is initially starting with 500 bicycles across three cities – Bangalore, Chennai, and Kolkata, it eventually plans on having at least 10,000 cycles on the road by the end of this year.

To be made available at Rs 10 for half an hour (Rs 20 per hour), the startup aims to make a Pedl bicycle available every 50 to 100 meters in Indian cities.

But, are Indian roads ready for bicycle rentals?

While on the face of it, Indian roads don’t seem so ideal for cycling, but Zoomcar co-founder and CEO, Greg Moran believes that it is more of a ‘chicken and egg kind of situation’ – “China didn’t have many cycle lanes when they started cycle rentals. As the service grew infrastructure was also built. It will happen here too. We got to take the leap. A business model has to come from the private sector. The government then works to create an ecosystem, like it is doing for e-cars.”

Zoomcar is hoping that bicycle rentals end up having a greater impact on Indian users than what was witnessed in China. While bicycle companies in the US offer their users a model where they can drop a bicycle anywhere and it gets automatically locked. The bike can then be unlocked via a QR code. However, in India, Pedl is planning to have drop points where bicycles can be easily parked.



“We look at India independent of China. If you look at our model it is different from what is done there. In China, the bicycles are abandoned. There is no thought process on making a user’s cycling experience consistent. We wanted to take a civic-minded approach, especially because India has infrastructural issues,” said Moran.

Moran also revealed that at present Zoomcar is in the midst of discussions with various governmental bodies to develop policies and design urban infrastructure that can prove helpful in propagation of dock-less cycle sharing across the Indian subcontinent.

While after cars, Zoomcar seems to be focused on capturing the bicycle rental market, it has no plans of entering into bike and scooter rentals anytime soon. This is preliminary because of regulatory hurdles that restrict the use of two-wheelers as commercial vehicles in India. However, according to Moran the firm has already evaluated the option and had also put it in a testing mode.

China’s bicycle rentals on-demand startup, Ofo, which is popularly also referred to as the Uber for Bikes, will soon enter the Indian market. The company, which became a unicorn earlier this year might grace the Indian market with its presence by the first half of next year.

While China’s bicycle rentals on-demand startup, Ofo is gearing to enter India early next year, its Indian counterpart self-drive car and bike rental firm Drivezy has decided to get ready for the challenge by raising a whooping Rs 65 crore ($10 million) in a part-equity and part-debt round recently.

It seems, the competition in the bike rental business in the country is going to spruce up like never before.

This development was first reported in MoneyControl.

[Image: NDTV Gadgets]

Zoomcar To Offer Bicycles For Rent At Rs 20 Per Hour

While cycling might not be that famous a sport among the current generation right now, it is important to bring that trend back considering the traffic and pollution situation that our cities are facing and the health issues we’re piling on because of our busy schedules.

Gauging the opportunity that lies ahead, several firms have come up with bicycle-sharing services of their own. Bangalore-based self-drive car rental startup Zoomcar is one such startup. The startup recently launched a tech-enabled bicycle-sharing service called Pedl.

After months of planning and testing out the model, Zoomcar has finally launched India's first app-based cycle renting platform. Though the startup is initially starting with 500 bicycles across three cities – Bangalore, Chennai, and Kolkata, it eventually plans on having at least 10,000 cycles on the road by the end of this year.

To be made available at Rs 10 for half an hour (Rs 20 per hour), the startup aims to make a Pedl bicycle available every 50 to 100 meters in Indian cities.

But, are Indian roads ready for bicycle rentals?

While on the face of it, Indian roads don’t seem so ideal for cycling, but Zoomcar co-founder and CEO, Greg Moran believes that it is more of a ‘chicken and egg kind of situation’ – “China didn’t have many cycle lanes when they started cycle rentals. As the service grew infrastructure was also built. It will happen here too. We got to take the leap. A business model has to come from the private sector. The government then works to create an ecosystem, like it is doing for e-cars.”

Zoomcar is hoping that bicycle rentals end up having a greater impact on Indian users than what was witnessed in China. While bicycle companies in the US offer their users a model where they can drop a bicycle anywhere and it gets automatically locked. The bike can then be unlocked via a QR code. However, in India, Pedl is planning to have drop points where bicycles can be easily parked.



“We look at India independent of China. If you look at our model it is different from what is done there. In China, the bicycles are abandoned. There is no thought process on making a user’s cycling experience consistent. We wanted to take a civic-minded approach, especially because India has infrastructural issues,” said Moran.

Moran also revealed that at present Zoomcar is in the midst of discussions with various governmental bodies to develop policies and design urban infrastructure that can prove helpful in propagation of dock-less cycle sharing across the Indian subcontinent.

While after cars, Zoomcar seems to be focused on capturing the bicycle rental market, it has no plans of entering into bike and scooter rentals anytime soon. This is preliminary because of regulatory hurdles that restrict the use of two-wheelers as commercial vehicles in India. However, according to Moran the firm has already evaluated the option and had also put it in a testing mode.

China’s bicycle rentals on-demand startup, Ofo, which is popularly also referred to as the Uber for Bikes, will soon enter the Indian market. The company, which became a unicorn earlier this year might grace the Indian market with its presence by the first half of next year.

While China’s bicycle rentals on-demand startup, Ofo is gearing to enter India early next year, its Indian counterpart self-drive car and bike rental firm Drivezy has decided to get ready for the challenge by raising a whooping Rs 65 crore ($10 million) in a part-equity and part-debt round recently.

It seems, the competition in the bike rental business in the country is going to spruce up like never before.

This development was first reported in MoneyControl.

[Image: NDTV Gadgets]

Bengaluru-based Car and Bike Rental Platform Drivezy Raises $10 Mn Funding

While China’s bicycle rentals on-demand startup, Ofo is gearing to enter India early next year, its Indian counterpart self-drive car and bike rental firm Drivezy has decided to get ready for the challenge by raising a whooping Rs 65 crore ($10 million) in a part-equity and part-debt round.

Formerly called JustRide, an equity investment totalling $5 million was made by American and Japanese investors, which included Axan Partners, Das Capital and IT Farm, while a consortium of banks and NBFCs including Mahindra Finance, ICICI Bank, Cholamandalam Finance and Shriram Finance have gone for a $5 million investment in debt in Drivezy.

Transportation is considered as backbone of any modern economy. However, rapid motorisation effectuates its own set of issues. While on one hand the burgeoning number of vehicles on road has become a menace in metros across India, a number of cities suffer from lack of good urban commuting solutions. The concept of car rentals may be simple, but it holds immense potential. Be it the positive impact of rental vehicles on the environment or reducing the number of vehicles out on the streets, the shared economy of self drive car rentals can be considered as a promising solution to a number of problems plaguing the urban India right now.

The startup will use the money raised to enter new markets across India and abroad, revealed Ashwarya Singh, CEO and co-founder, Drivezy in a statement. It will also use a part of the capital raised to create rental coins, its own private currency. Drivezy recently announced the launch of its private Initial Coin Offering (ICO). It has partnered with Japanese payment firm Anypay for the same. The startup plans on introducing bitcoin as a payment option as it believes by developing initiatives around it will allow for global ownership of its fleet.

“We have started accepting cryptocurrency such as bitcoin for transactions on our platform. We have seen 150-160 transactions through that mode so far,“ said CEO Ashwarya Singh in a statement to Economic Times.

Drivezy, which is currently claiming to earning an impressive Rs 1.3 crore in monthly revenues, is focused on scaling its fleet by more than six times to 8,000 divided 50-50 between cars and bikes. The company is focused on turning profitable by March next year.

[Image: Justdial]

Bengaluru-based Car and Bike Rental Platform Drivezy Raises $10 Mn Funding

While China’s bicycle rentals on-demand startup, Ofo is gearing to enter India early next year, its Indian counterpart self-drive car and bike rental firm Drivezy has decided to get ready for the challenge by raising a whooping Rs 65 crore ($10 million) in a part-equity and part-debt round.

Formerly called JustRide, an equity investment totalling $5 million was made by American and Japanese investors, which included Axan Partners, Das Capital and IT Farm, while a consortium of banks and NBFCs including Mahindra Finance, ICICI Bank, Cholamandalam Finance and Shriram Finance have gone for a $5 million investment in debt in Drivezy.

Transportation is considered as backbone of any modern economy. However, rapid motorisation effectuates its own set of issues. While on one hand the burgeoning number of vehicles on road has become a menace in metros across India, a number of cities suffer from lack of good urban commuting solutions. The concept of car rentals may be simple, but it holds immense potential. Be it the positive impact of rental vehicles on the environment or reducing the number of vehicles out on the streets, the shared economy of self drive car rentals can be considered as a promising solution to a number of problems plaguing the urban India right now.

The startup will use the money raised to enter new markets across India and abroad, revealed Ashwarya Singh, CEO and co-founder, Drivezy in a statement. It will also use a part of the capital raised to create rental coins, its own private currency. Drivezy recently announced the launch of its private Initial Coin Offering (ICO). It has partnered with Japanese payment firm Anypay for the same. The startup plans on introducing bitcoin as a payment option as it believes by developing initiatives around it will allow for global ownership of its fleet.

“We have started accepting cryptocurrency such as bitcoin for transactions on our platform. We have seen 150-160 transactions through that mode so far,“ said CEO Ashwarya Singh in a statement to Economic Times.

Drivezy, which is currently claiming to earning an impressive Rs 1.3 crore in monthly revenues, is focused on scaling its fleet by more than six times to 8,000 divided 50-50 between cars and bikes. The company is focused on turning profitable by March next year.

[Image: Justdial]

Beijing-based Bicycle Sharing Startup Ofo To Enter India Next Year

China’s bicycle rentals on-demand startup, Ofo is planning to enter the Indian market, according to an Economic Times report. The report claims that the company, which became a unicorn earlier this year might grace the Indian market with its presence by the first half of next year.

The world's first and largest station-free bike share platform and mobile app, ofo provides sustainable, affordable transportation to all.

China's bicycle rentals on-demand space has been flourishing at an unprecedented rate with the sector raking in investments worth more than $300 million this year alone. In February this year, Beijing-based Ofo, which is popularly also referred to as the Uber for Bikes, became the first player in the space to have reached the much-coveted $1 billion valuation, thus adding the title unicorn to its name.

Considering the startup has already captured its home market, it makes sense that the company now wants to expand beyond its home market.

“Ofo is currently doing extensive ground research in India, examining government policies and the permissions required where foreign businesses in the transportation sector are concerned, as well as looking into the infrastructural limitations,” the report quotes a person aware about the development.

The person also highlights that considering the fact that sharing economy already exists in India, select state government officials in the country realise that if Ofo enters the country it can significantly help in resolving the congestion issues that the South Asian country is facing. He also shares that the government can also act on building larger regional transit systems that are sustainable and are in line with smart cities plans.

Founded in 2014, Ofo’s mission is to solve the “last mile” problem of urban transportation, helping commuters and travelers get to exactly where they need to go by making bikes accessible to everyone. It is currently one of the world’s leading “station-free” bike-sharing platform operated via an online mobile app.

Since Ofo’s system doesn’t require any docking stations, it provides its users significant flexibility to find and return bikes anywhere, anytime.

In addition to India, the startup backed by Didi Chuxing is also contemplating an expansion into Indonesia by next year.

This development was first reported in Economic Times.

Beijing-based Bicycle Sharing Startup Ofo To Enter India Next Year

China’s bicycle rentals on-demand startup, Ofo is planning to enter the Indian market, according to an Economic Times report. The report claims that the company, which became a unicorn earlier this year might grace the Indian market with its presence by the first half of next year.

The world's first and largest station-free bike share platform and mobile app, ofo provides sustainable, affordable transportation to all.

China's bicycle rentals on-demand space has been flourishing at an unprecedented rate with the sector raking in investments worth more than $300 million this year alone. In February this year, Beijing-based Ofo, which is popularly also referred to as the Uber for Bikes, became the first player in the space to have reached the much-coveted $1 billion valuation, thus adding the title unicorn to its name.

Considering the startup has already captured its home market, it makes sense that the company now wants to expand beyond its home market.

“Ofo is currently doing extensive ground research in India, examining government policies and the permissions required where foreign businesses in the transportation sector are concerned, as well as looking into the infrastructural limitations,” the report quotes a person aware about the development.

The person also highlights that considering the fact that sharing economy already exists in India, select state government officials in the country realise that if Ofo enters the country it can significantly help in resolving the congestion issues that the South Asian country is facing. He also shares that the government can also act on building larger regional transit systems that are sustainable and are in line with smart cities plans.

Founded in 2014, Ofo’s mission is to solve the “last mile” problem of urban transportation, helping commuters and travelers get to exactly where they need to go by making bikes accessible to everyone. It is currently one of the world’s leading “station-free” bike-sharing platform operated via an online mobile app.

Since Ofo’s system doesn’t require any docking stations, it provides its users significant flexibility to find and return bikes anywhere, anytime.

In addition to India, the startup backed by Didi Chuxing is also contemplating an expansion into Indonesia by next year.

This development was first reported in Economic Times.

While India Struggles, China's Newest Unicorn is A Bicycle Rentals Startup

China has once again shown the world how it is done. The country which boosts of having the largest population on Earth has found a new trend being adopted by its citizens. The trend of renting bicycles has spread like wild fire and given birth to the country's first unicorn bicycle rentals on-demand startup, Ofo.

China's bicycle rentals on-demand space is flourishing at an unprecedented rate with the sector raking in investments worth more than $300 million this year alone — that too by just one company. And now comes the news that Beijing-based Ofo, which is popularly also referred to as the Uber for Bikes, has become the first player in the space to have reached the much-coveted $1 billion valuation, thus adding the title unicorn to its name.

The company behind the yellow two-wheelers that are nowadays seen everywhere in China has recently raised $450 million in its Series D round which was led by Russia’s DST.

The funding round saw a major onstage and offstage participation by China's local car-hailing giant Didi Chuxing, the startup which is most famed for driving its arch rival, US-based taxi-hailing giant Uber out of the country. Not only has Didi itself invested in Ofo but it has also got some of its own investors like Matrix China and CITIC interested in the startup.

Ofo began its journey in the year 2014 as a student project at Beijing’s prestigious Peking University. Eventual PhD dropout Dai Wei and four other students had initially decided to explore cycle tourism but they finally decided to something around bike-sharing. It's arch-rival Mobike was also started by Hu Weiwei, a former journalist around the same time.

These startups aim to democratise access to rental bikes by leveraging the boon of technology. The bikes being provided by these startups come tagged with GPS chips which enable them to be easily rented out via a mobile app without having the need to be stored in a central location.

Mobike, which has raised capital from Tencent, Xiaomi, Sequoia China and Singaporean sovereign fund Temasek among others, started its year with a $215 million Series D round of its own in January. This was followed by a whopping $85 million in additional capital via strategic investments from Temasek and Foxconn.

It is interesting to note here that India, the country with the second largest population just behind China, has still not been able to capitalise the big potential that the space holds. Though there are many startups trying to make a mark in the space in the country, none has been able to achieve success on the same scale as China's Ofo and Mobike.