Since its launch in Singapore in January this year, oBike has rolled out in Australia, Germany, Malaysia, the Netherlands, Taiwan, Thailand and the UK

Singapore-based bike-sharing startup oBike has secured US$45 million in Series B investment from a slew of investors investors, including a leading unnamed global transportation platform.

Grishin Robotics, a VC fund owned by Dmitry Grishin (Co-founder and chairman of Russia’s Mail.Ru Group) and several family offices in Southeast Asia also co-invested in the round.

The company said in a statement it will use the funds to shift its gears to become a global player.

Also Read: This intelligent electric scooter could force Mobike and Ofo to shift gears in Singapore

 “We aim to bring our success story in Singapore to other parts of the world with this round of funding. We hope to empower commuters globally with flexibility, convenience while helping them reduce their carbon footprint at the same time,” oBike Co-founder and CMO Edward Chen said.

oBike is a station-less smart bike-sharing company that allows commuters to travel during one-way first- and last-mile commuting – via bicycles located all over the island. Since its launch in Singapore in January, the company has rolled out in Australia, Germany, Malaysia, the Netherlands, Taiwan, Thailand and the UK.

All its bikes are environmentally-friendly.

The company recently said it would be introducing 1,000 new bicycles to its existing fleet. Dubbed Smart Generation, these bicycles are 5kg lighter than its predecessor. In addition to being lighter, the new bicycles have ergonomic handlebar, enabling a more user-friendly and smoother ride.

Bike-sharing is fast-becoming a culture of sorts in Southeast Asia, especially in Singapore. And the sector has been attracting massive rounds of funding over the past few months. Majority of the companies operating in Singapore are headquartered in China, including Mobike and Ofo.

In July. Ofo raised over US$700 million in Series E funding led by Alibaba Group, Hony Capital, and CITIC Private Equity, bringing its total funding raised to date to over US$1 billion. In June, Mobike, another bike-sharing giant raised over US$600 million in a Series E round led by long-time backer Tencent.

 

 

 

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