China bike-sharing app Ofo raises $130m Series C

Local ride-hailing app operator Didi Chuxing led the initial tranche, having invested tens of millions of dollars as part of a strategic agreement in late September. US hedge fund Coatue Management, smart phone maker Xiaomi, Shunwei Capital Partners and CITIC Private Equity co-led the second tranche, with participation from existing backers such as Vision Plus Capital, Didi Chuxing, Matrix Partners China, GSR Ventures and Yuri Milner, according to a statement. 

Ofo launched on the campus at Peking University as part of a student bike-sharing project in 2015 and has since expanded into other schools. Users park their bikes wherever they want and rely on a mobile app to find available bikes parked nearby. The company now has over 70,000 bikes on campuses across 20 Chinese cities, with 1.8 million users taking around 500,000 rides every day.

In February, the start-up raised a Series A round from GSR, ZhenFund, Beijing Dongfang Hongdao Asset Management and angel investor Gang Wang across two tranches, 36kr reported. Seven months later, Matrix China provided a Series B round.

The new capital will go towards growing Ofo's team, improving its hardware and software, and expand its market share. The company is teaming up with Xiaomi to upgrade its bikes and plans to incorporate its service into Didi's app.

Didi Chuxing - the product of a merger between one-time rivals Didi Dache and Kuaidi Dache last year - closed a $7.3 billion round comprising equity and debt funding in mid-June. Two months ago, it announced it would acquire Uber's China operation, ending a costly battle between the two unprofitable businesses.

Ofo competes with Mobike, which is backed by Joy Capital and Panda Capital. Mobike is said to have raised a $100 million Series C round from Hillhouse Capital, Warburg Pincus, Sequoia Capital and Qiming Venture Partners. Other smart bike manufacturers including Tsinova and 700Bike have also secured VC funding.

• Tweet  
• Facebook  
• LinkedIn  
• Google plus  
• Save this article  
• Send to  

• Topics
• Greater China
• Consumer
• Technology
• Expansion
• China
• TMT
• Transportation
• Shunwei Capital Partners
• Citic Private Equity
• GSR Ventures
• Xiaomi