Chinese bike-share operators making tracks for Southeast Asia

 20-Sep-17, Nikkei Asian Review 

Chinese bike-sharing startups Mobike and Ofo are expanding to several Southeast Asian countries, betting that the push by local governments to encourage cycling will overcome the region's structural barriers.

Image: Nikkei Asian Review

Bike-sharing has taken off in many of China's metropolises. Mobike raised funds from Chinese tech giant Tencent and US equity funds. Ofo won backing from Alibaba. Together, the two young companies are branching out in Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand.

Singapore is cooperating with the companies by expanding bike parking spaces at transport stations. The aging population and the health costs that come with it are straining the national budget. Because of the uptick in lifestyle diseases such as diabetes, authorities are laying down 700km worth of bike lanes by 2030 as a way to get people up and moving.

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