China’s Didi to launch ride-hailing services in Sydney

Chinese ride-hailing giant Didi Chuxing today announced that it will launch ride-sharing services in Sydney, Australia on March 16.

Photo credit: Didi Chuxing

The launch will start with Didi Express (carpooling) and Didi Max (seven-seater) services, according to a statement.

The Chinese company first entered Australia in 2018. It now operates in Geelong, Melbourne, Newcastle, Brisbane, Gold Coast, Sunshine Coast, and Perth. It currently offers Didi Share, in addition to Didi Express and Didi Max, across the country.

“Didi’s driver-partners have served over 2 million riders across Australia. Introducing our services to the global economic and cultural hub of Sydney is a major milestone for our young team here,” said Lyn Ma, general manager at Didi Australia.

The company is up against US-based Uber, India’s Ola, and homegrown transportation platform GoCatch, among others, in Australia.

Founded in 2012, Beijing-based Didi offers app-based transportation services for 550 million users across Asia, Latin America, and Australia. Its service covers taxi, express, premier, luxe, and bus services, as well as designated driving, enterprise solutions, bike-sharing, e-bike sharing, automobile solutions, and food delivery.

According to Crunchbase, Didi has raised a total of US$21.2 billion in over 18 funding rounds. Its latest round was a US$600 million corporate round from Toyota Motor Corporation last year.

Didi acquired Uber China, its largest competitor in its home market, in a deal worth US$35 billion in 2016. It now takes nearly 90% of all ride-hailing bookings in the country, according to Prescient & Strategic Intelligence.

The report also said that the ride-hailing market was valued at US$50.4 billion in 2018 and is expected to reach US$120.2 billion by 2024 at a compound annual growth rate of 13%. Asia Pacific stands as the largest ride-hailing market globally.