Lyft is making its boldest worldwide transfer but by buying European taxi-hailing platform FreeNow from German automotive giants BMW and Mercedes-Benz for roughly €175 million ($197.4 million) in money. The deal marks Lyft’s first growth of its ride-hailing enterprise past North America and positions the San Francisco-based firm to compete extra immediately with Uber on a worldwide scale. Till now, Lyft’s worldwide presence has been restricted to bike and scooter applications, together with Santander Cycles in London. With FreeNow onboard, Lyft enters the ride-hailing area in additional than 150 European cities spanning 9 nations—together with key markets like London, Berlin, Barcelona, Athens, and Hamburg.
FreeNow, owned by German automakers BMW and Mercedes-Benz, originated from a €1 billion mobility joint venture launched in 2019 beneath the previous Daimler and BMW partnership. That enterprise included different companies like ShareNow (car-sharing), ChargeNow (EV charging), and ParkNow (parking), all aimed toward constructing a sturdy European counterweight to Uber. Nonetheless, the OEMs started dismantling the enterprise in 2022, promoting ShareNow to Stellantis as a part of a strategic realignment. In 2020, a rumor circulated that Uber was apparently interested in shopping for FreeNow at a reported determine of $1.2 billion.
FreeNow’s enterprise mannequin distinguishes it from opponents. Relatively than disrupting native taxi companies, it aggregates them alongside private-hire and premium autos. In keeping with Lyft, taxis made up round 90% of FreeNow’s gross bookings in 2024, and this combine will stay central to its European technique. FreeNow achieved break-even standing final 12 months, boosted by a 13% enhance in income and its emphasis on collaboration with licensed taxi operators.
Regardless of the acquisition, FreeNow will retain its model id for now. Nonetheless, Lyft hinted {that a} rebrand could also be thought-about sooner or later as the businesses work towards deeper integration. FreeNow’s cooperation-based mannequin—embracing regulation and conventional taxi fleets—enabled it to keep away from lots of the authorized hurdles Uber has encountered in cities like London and Paris.
[Source: Reuters]
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