Mobycy, a bicycle-sharing application, has raised $500,000 (Rs 3 crore) in a seed round funding from a US-based angel investor. The idea is to address the last mile connectivity in metro areas besides enabling students to commute easily in campus areas.
The company launched its dockless bicycle sharing app recently in Delhi. Currently, it has about 5,000 bicycles, which will be used in Delhi-NCR market, and the plan is to increase it to 50,000 bicycles in the next six months, company’s co-founder Rashi Agarwal told DNA Money.
Headquartered in Gurugram, Mobycy is co-founded by Akash Gupta and Rashi Agarwal.
Gupta, who is also the chief executive officer of the company, left his job at MobiKwik as vice president to start his own green-tech venture.
The app will be expanded to 12 major cities including Pune, Hyderabad, Chandigarh, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai.
One will need to download the app, scan the QR code to unlock the bicycle and then take a ride. Since it is a dockless app, bicycles can be parked at any public parking spot and will have to be locked manually. The only exceptions are gated community and private compounds where it can’t be parked.
The target is to expand to 20 key cities by next year. “We are in discussions with investors to raise more funds,” Agarwal said. The idea was conceptualised in August this year, though the initial work has been going on for some time, she said.
The company is offering two pricing models. One subscription model is for Rs 99 where a user can take a two-hour ride per day and 60 in a month. Another model is Rs 10 for per hour ride. The users will have to sign up using their Aadhar identification and pay a nominal security deposit of Rs 999, which is completely refundable. For students, the security deposit is Rs 499 and signup will be using their college photo identification.
Till now, it has finalised 20 spots in Gurgaon and is in discussions with state government and other government organisations for parking spots in Delhi. About 15-20 bicycles can be parked per spot.
“This will also curb the growing menace of pollution and traffic congestion while promoting fitness among people. The bicycles are fitted with the internet of things (IoT) locks and global positioning system (GPS) tracking, and can be easily hired via the Mobycy app available on Android Play Store and Apple AppStore, unlocked with a QR Code and paid for digitally,” Gupta said.
Bicycles can be rented from places such as metro stations, bus stands, key markets and popular haunts like Huda Metro station, Galleria Market, Golf course road, North and South Campus of DU, Cyber City among others. Besides, students from various colleges and universities, such as Amity Noida, Manav Rachna University Faridabad, and Delhi University can now hire at subsidized subscription plans.
Mobycy’s smart bikes are enabled with internet of things (IoT) locking devices and global positioning system (GPS)-based tracking sensors. They can be operated without docks or stations for parking.
Offlate, bicycle-sharing apps have garnered the attention of many companies. Ola, the cab-sharing app, plans to start its own version of bicycle sharing Ola Pedal. The feature is currently being piloted at various campuses in educational institutes including IIT Kanpur and technology parks. In October, car rental start-up Zoom Car had introduced a bicycle rental service called PEDL, beginning with 500 bicycles across Bengaluru, Kolkata and Chennai.
Going forward, this segment will generate much action as people shift to greener and fitter options of commuting.
GREEN PEDAL
- App will be expanded to 12 major cities including Pune, Ahmedabad, etc.
- Target is to expand to 20 cities by next year for which more funds will be raised
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 "Co-founders Rashi Agarwal (L) and Akash Gupta (C)")
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