Rakuten to buy stake in San Francisco-based ride-sharing service provider Lyft

ntttttttttttt

Rakuten Inc announced Thursday that it has agreed to purchase a 11.9% stake in Lyft, the San Francisco-based ride-sharing service provider and sharing economy pioneer. Rakuten is investing $300 million as the lead investor in Lyft’s series E investment round.

n

Hiroshi Mikitani, founder and CEO of Rakuten, said: “We have seen the future and this is it. By empowering human connection, the sharing economy is going to fundamentally transform the service industry and benefit society. We believe businesses like Lyft that unlock the latent potential that exists in people and society hold the key to the future.”

n

John Zimmer, co-founder and president of Lyft, said: “With this new investment, we are closer than ever before to realizing our vision of re-connecting people and communities through better transportation.”

n

The funding will allow Lyft to continue growing its service and invest in both domestic and overseas expansion.

tttttttntttntttntttttttttttt© Japan Todaynttttttttt