Intro Note: Founded in 2014, ofo is the world's first and largest station-free bike-sharing platform operated via an online mobile application. Since its entry into the Indian market early this year, ofo’s dockless bicycles have been changing the concept of urban mobility in Indian cities. Presenting a green, convenient, and affordable riding experience, ofo has been launching a series of pilot projects in select gated communities, educational campuses, IT campuses and public parks across seven cities including Chennai, Pune, Indore, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, and Delhi. Recently ofo crossed a major milestone by rolling out city-level services in the city of Coimbatore – the first time in the country.
ofo Raises $866 Million in Latest Funding Round Led by Alibaba
Mar 13, 2018 – Bangalore - ofo, the world first and largest station-free bike-sharing platform, announced a new $866 million round of funding led by Alibaba Group, with participation from Haofeng Group, Tianhe Capital, Ant Financial and Junli Capital. The strategic financing presents the highest funding record in the bike-sharing industry and marks a new era for operational efficiency of the bike-sharing system.
As a precedent of asset mobilization in the bike-sharing industry, ofo uses a combination of debt and equity financing for this round. ofo will drive long-term success independently with the continuing support of leading investors.
Dai Wei, founder and CEO of ofo said: “As the global leader in the bike-sharing sector, ofo has been transitioning from a phase of rapid growth to a stage of high-quality development. ofo will continue to put our customers first and lead the bike-sharing industry with technological innovation and efficient operations.”
According to the recent industry report, ofo has already achieved dominant market place globally. The service improves the urban transport
To date, ofo has operations in over 250 cities across 21 countries alongside widespread usage by over 200 million global users with more than 6 billion efficient, convenient and green rides, totaling to 32 million rides per day.
About ofo
Founded in 2014, ofo is the world’s first and largest “station-free” bike-sharing platform operated via an online mobile application.
The development of ofo platform was inspired by the concept of sharing economy and facilitated by smartphone technology, aiming to tackle “the last mile” challenge in urban areas.
As of today, ofo is ramping up operations in over 250 cities across 21 countries. It generates 32 million transactions daily and has provided over 200 million global users with 6 billion efficient, convenient and green rides, which have reduced carbon emissions by over 3.24 million tons in total, the equivalent of saving more than 920 million liters of gasoline or reducing 1.55 million tons of PM2.5 emissions.
From April to June of 2017 alone, users worldwide accumulated a riding distance of over 1.2 billion kilometers, reducing 84 million liters of fuel consumption and 265,000 tons of carbon dioxide.
ofo’s bike-sharing system requires no fixed docking stations, providing significant flexibility for users to find and return bikes.
As more people switch to ofo bikes from cars for short-distance travel, they do only not get more exercise by riding, but also helps reduces traffic congestion, fuel consumption and thus air pollution.
In July 2017, ofo has completed Series E funding of US$700 million, becoming the world’s biggest and most valued bike-sharing company. In March 2018, ofo secured the E2-1 funding of US$866 million, which was led by the Alibaba Group.
ofo Brand Guide
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The logo ‘ofo’ resembles a person riding a bicycle towards the west, where the two ‘o’ represents the front and rear end of the bicycle wheel and the ‘f’ is the user.
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Do’s: Please spell our company name as ‘ofo’.
Don’ts: Please do not spell ofo as ‘Ofo’ or ‘OFO’
A Revolution: “Station-Free” Bike Sharing
Before the time of the invention of ofo, many metropolitan cities have deployed certain extent of bike-sharing schemes, hoping to mitigate the long-lasting challenges of heavy traffic and environment pollutions.
However, docking stations occupy pedestrian space and make it inconvenient for people to pick up and return bikes. It is also a lengthy process to get approval, funding and maintenance support from local governments and agencies.
ofo is the world’s first company to propose a dockless bike-sharing scheme facilitated by its mobile application.
This revolutionary model brings true flexibility and convenience to users and ensures that all users have access to ofo bikes anytime anywhere.
How it works?
ofo platform is easy-to-use. After downloading ofo mobile app (iOS/Android), users may scan the QR code or enter the plate number displayed on each bike to receive a passcode to unlock the bike.
Once reaching destination, users may park the bike in any authorized parking areas nearby their destination and lock the bike to end their ride.
Users can get credit bonus if they park their bikes in the preferred parking zone or operating zone.
Healthier, quicker and greener
Data from Amap, one of China’s leading online map and navigation services, suggest that 19 out of 20 major Chinese cities that have access to ofo have seen substantial reduction of traffic congestion in the second quarter of 2017.
The accumulative rising distance of ofo trips from April to June is about 1.2 billion kilometers. That means it reduces 84 million liters of fuel consumption and 265,000 tons of carbon dioxide, according to a study by China Academy of Transportation Sciences and ofo.
ofo has partnered with the UN Development Programme to achieve the Global Sustainability Goals and launched a new partnership with Rihanna’s Clara Lionel Foundation, in which ofo donated bicycles to girls living in Malawi in need of a safe way to get to school.
As part of the initiative, ofo will also donate the income on the 17th day of every month to celebrate the 17 Sustainable Development Goals.
Riding across the globe
So far, ofo has entered 21 countries: China, Singapore, UK, US, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Thailand, Austria, Japan, Korea Russia, the Czech Republic, Italy, the Netherlands, Australia, Spain, Portugal and Israel, Hungary, India and France.
ofo has started operation in more than 50 cities with more than 100,000 bikes outside China. The total number of rides has surpassed 10 million.
In general, ofo determines which cities to launch service in based on extensive research about citizens’ transportation needs, behaviors, the local cycling culture and the infrastructure conditions.
According to market research, we know that there is a demand for station-free bike-sharing in many cities across the globe.
No matter where we go, we are always in full consultation with local authorities such as the city council and keep listening to the riders, making sure we accord with the local regulation and make positive contribution to the community.
Global partnerships
ofo started collaborating with the United Nations Development Programme in April 2017 to achieve the Global Sustainability Goals. It also launched a partnership with Rihanna’s Clara Lionel Foundation in August 2017 to improve the lives of girls in Malawi by funding scholarships and donating bikes to provide them with a safe way to get to school. In Oct 2017, ofo joined hands with C40 in tackling worldwide climate change issues and will contribute in every way possible to research focused on healthy livable cities, identification of high impact actions, and benefits of inclusive climate actions.
To learn more, please visit www.ofo.com