Didi Kuaidi, Ola, Lyft, GrabTaxi form global partnership

Under the partnership, the four companies will leverage each other's technology, local market knowledge and business resources, so that customers of one service can use the apps to order rides when traveling in markets in which other services operate. The arrangement will begin from the first quarter of next year.

"Each company will handle mapping, routing and payments through a secure API [application programming interface], providing the best global experience for the millions of travelers that cross between India, Southeast Asia, China, and the US every year," the companies said in a joint statement.

These companies, which collectively have raised more than $7 billion in funding, now cover nearly 50% of the world's population. Their main rival is Uber, which has raised $8.21 billion and is reportedly readying a $2.1 billion at a valuation of $62.5 billion. Tiger Global Management and T.Rowe Price are among the investors, according to Bloomberg.

In August, Didi Kuaidi - the product of a merger between one-time rivals Didi Dache and Kuaidi Dache - closed a $3 billion fund round, said to the largest ever fundraise by a private internet start-up globally.

The company joined a $350 million round for GrabTai alongside China Investment Corporation (CIC) and US-based Coatue Management. It then invested $100 million in Lyft as part of strategic alliance. In September, Didi Kuaidi invested in Ola, as part of a funding round worth $250 million.

In China, Didi Kuaidi holds an 83% market share in private car-hailing and a dominant position in other verticals including taxi-hailing, bus and corporate services in China. It claims to the largest mobile transportation platform in the world, providing seven million rides every day across 360 Chinese cities.

Lyft offers seven million rides per month in more than 190 cities. In October alone, it reached an annual gross run rate of $1 billion and reached over 40% market share in San Francisco and Austin.

In Southeast Asia, GrabTaxi controls 95% of the market for third-party taxi-hailing and a more than 50% market share in private car hire. Ola's transportation services are available in 102 cities across India. With more than 350,000 vehicles registered on its platform, the company receives over a million booking requests a day.

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