AAA Lime sweetens $250m deal

Lime sweetens $250m deal

US-based bike-sharing service Lime is in the process of raising $250m in funding from a consortium led by GV, the early-stage investment arm of diversified conglomerate Alphabet.

Coatue Management and Andreessen Horowitz are also expected to take part in the round.

Lime, founded in 2017 a LimeBike, operates a network of dockless bikes that users can rent through an app and activate by scanning a QR code. The company has also added electric-assist bikes and electric scooters to its network.

The company was previously reported to be seeking a total of $500m in equity and debt financing, but the latter has been put on hold for the time being. It is unclear what prompted the decision to halt debt financing.

Lime previously closed a $120m series B round that included NGP Capital, the venture firm formed by telecoms equipment manufacturer Nokia, Andreessen Horowitz and Decent Capital, though it is unknown which of the two series B tranches they participated in.

The $50m initial close in October 2017 featured the Stanford-StartX fund, an investment vehicle backed by Stanford University, DCM Ventures, GGV Capital, Franklin Templeton Investments, Section 32, AME Cloud Ventures and Durant Company.

The first close was led by Coatue Management and was followed by a $70m extension in February 2018 that included Fifth Wall Ventures and Rainbow Technology.

Andreessen Horowitz led a $12m series A round in March 2017, with contributions from IDG Ventures, DCM Ventures, Seven Seas, Immersion Ventures, Danhua Capital and assorted angel investors.

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *