Tier, Dott to form Europe's largest e-scooter rental firm
10/01/2024 11:00
By Nick Carey
LONDON, Jan 10 (Reuters) - E-scooter rental firms Tier
Mobility and Dott said on Wednesday that they will merge to form
the largest European operator, with their investors injecting an
additional 60 million euros ($66 million) into the combined
business.
The combined entity, which will initially continue to
operate the two brands, will operate e-scooter rental services
in 20 countries with annual revenue of 250 million euros.
Tier and Dott offer rides in many cities including Berlin,
Brussels, Dubai, London, Paris and Rome.
The merger may require some regulatory approval and the two
companies said it was subject to several conditions being met.
After an early period of rapid expansion, e-scooter rental
firms have toughening regulations and more demanding customers,
with further rounds of consolidation predicted for the app-based
industry as many operators have struggled to make a profit.
Amsterdam-based Dott has raised more than $210 million,
while Berlin-based Tier announced a $250 million fundraising
round in 2020 that was led by Softbank 9984.T .
The new combined company will be headquartered in Berlin,
with Tier CEO Lawrence Leuschner serving as chairman and Dott
CEO Henri Moissinac as CEO.
"By bringing Tier and Dott together, we are well positioned
to capture the next phase of growth and further accelerate our
path to profitability," Moissinac said in a statement.
The deal is backed by a mix of existing shareholders, led by
Abu Dhabi state investor Mubadala Capital and Belgian investment
company Sofina SOF.BR .
The two largest global e-scooter rental firms are Lime and
Bird, both U.S. based. Bird announced last month that it would
restructure its business to focus on profitability as part of
Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings.
($1 = 0.9137 euros)
(Reporting by Nick Carey; Editing by Alexander Smith)
((nick.carey@thomsonreuters.com; +44 7385 414 954;))