Didi Chuxing has started expanding globally in a steady mode. It announced yesterday that it would start operating in Australia from June 25.
The Chinese ride-sharing giant has already started recruiting local drivers and will begin operation in Melbourne. Australia has become the first English-speaking country where the company will be operating.
As a refresher, Didi Chuxing has turned out to be the most popular ride-sharing service in its homeland. It has acquired Uber China in August 2016 via a deal worth about $35 billion.
Since that time till now, Didi has covered Hong Kong and Taiwan via its branches. It also launched in Mexico back in April this year. It has plans to further expand on Australia starting this month and then to spread its wings over Japan and Latin America.
The company hasn’t yet set its foot in the US, but last May saw it earn a permit from California for testing fully driverless cars on public lanes. It may not just be Latin America but the Americas that Didi is targeting, and things look like game on for them already!
Regarding the ride-sharing market of Didi Chuxing in Australia, with Taxify of Estonia and Ola of India filling the nation’s roads in the past few months. While Didi will only start with Melbourne, details on its expansion plans aren’t disclosed. We still have to wait which other Australian cities will Didi cover. Stay tuned!