BEIJING, Aug. 9 (Xinhua) -- China’s largest bike-sharing company, Ofo, is partnering with SoftBank Commerce and Service for entering the Japanese market, the company said on August 9.
Ofo will deploy its “eye-catching yellow bike” in Tokyo and Osaka this September in the initial phase, before expanding to other parts in Japan.
Ofo’s partner SoftBank would be responsible for financing the mobile devices and other information technology.
Japan would be the seventh overseas market for Ofo, following its entry in Singapore, the United States, Britain, Kazakhstan, Thailand and Malaysia.
Ofo is seeking fresh capital less than a month after raising more than 700 million U.S. dollars from investors led by Alibaba Group and two others. The move came after its rival Mobike announced securing investment worth 600 million U.S. dollars led by Tencent Holdings in June.
The partnership will pave way for Ofo’s business development in Japan, enabling the company to better cater to local residents’ needs, said Cao Xiao, in charge of of Ofo’s Asia-Pacific business, adding that the company will strive to provide local residents with a convenient and cost-effective riding experience. (Edited by Yang Yifan, yangyifan@xinhua.org)
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