Theft, vandalism force Hong Kong bike sharing start-up Gobee to retreat from Europe
Asian bike sharing operators have embarked on overseas expansion over the past year as they burned through cash at home amid fierce competition
Hong Kong start-up Gobee.bike has become the first Asian bike sharing operator to retreat from Europe after incurring mass thefts and vandalism.
The company reported that over 1,000 bikes had been stolen and nearly 3,400 damaged during its four months of operation in France, prompting it to pull out of the European country, according to The Guardian. A separate report from news wire Agence France-Presse said irresponsible acts by minors were to blame for the mass destruction of its fleet.
“It was sad and disappointing to realise that a few individuals could ruin such a beautiful and promising project,” Agence France-Presse reported the company saying. “We had to come to the conclusion that it could not be viable and there was no other choice for us than shutting down, nationwide.”
China’s major bike sharing operators have embarked on overseas expansion as they burned through cash at home amid fierce competition, resulting in the closure of a dozen bike sharing firms over the past year. The business model, where users unlock a bike with an app and pay for their ride by scanning a QR code, has so far been exported to Singapore, Europe and the US.
Vandalism and theft together with irresponsible parking have become headaches for bike sharing operators operating in mainland China and in overseas locations. Last year, five Gobee bikes were found dumped in a river near Sha Tin in Hong Kong, triggering police investigations into criminal damage.
