Chinese bike-sharing platform Mobike has announced that users will no longer have to pay a RMB 299 ($45) deposit when they sign up to use the service, Reuters reports. The move is another sign that competition is increasing still further between the company and its rival Ofo.
Mobike was recently acquired by tech giant Meituan-Dianping for $2.7 billion, and the bike-share service is currently being integrated into the Meituan app, where users can do everything from buy movie tickets to get restaurant discounts.
Existing Mobike users will soon be able to get their deposits refunded, according to Reuters.
“The move is designed to establish a no-threshold, zero-burden and zero-condition deposit-free standard for the entire bikesharing industry,” Mobike said in a statement.
Mobike also plans to roll out rental electric bikes that can run for 70 kilometers on a single charge at speeds of up to 20 km/hour.
Mobike has around 200 million users worldwide, with the majority of these being based in the Chinese mainland. It is locked in a fierce battle for control of the bike rental market with Ofo, a company backed by Meituan-Dianping’s rival tech giants Alibaba and Didi Chuxing.