After two Chinese bike sharing start-ups Ofo and Mobike raised a combined US$230 million in October, a third bike sharing company is joining the battleground.
An investment unit of Shenzhen-listed chemicals and trading company Jiangsu Huaxicun Co., Ltd. has led a RMB150 million (US$22 million) series A funding round in Ubike, a new comer to the bike sharing space with big plans.
Aside from lead investor Yicun Capital, Black Hole Capital also participated in the round, as well as existing investors Zhonglu Capital and others.
Shanghai-based Ubike claims that its bikes will be easier to ride and sturdier than its earlier and much bigger rivals, as a result of a partnership with Shanghai’s Yongjiu Group, one of China’s oldest bicycle makers.
The company has also taken over certain public bikes previously operated by the government, it says, allowing itself a decent starting point in terms of the amount of bikes it has.
Ubike plans to launch products officially in November, and place around 100,000 bikes in Shanghai initially with other big cities to follow before year-end. Mobike, which was launched in December 2015, has 30,000 bikes in Shanghai.
Ubike does not say when it was founded, but it is most likely during the past couple of months. The company previously raised around RMB10 million angel investment from Zhonglu Capital and others in September.
