Lyft said Monday it is considering either selling or finding a strategic partner for its bikes and scooters unit as the rideshare company races Uber for market share.
The California-based Lyft said it has received "strong inbound interest" for its bike and scooter business, which served 3.6 million riders last year in 15 countries on roughly 68,000 bikes and scooters.
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While not disclosing how much of its revenue comes from the business, the company said in a blog post, "It's only logical for Lyft to listen to credible proposals and explore strategic partners and options in several forms to serve more riders."
New Lyft CEO David Risher has been cutting costs for the past few months after its strategy of lowering fares to challenge Uber worried investors that the move would hit profit margins.
In April, the former Amazon executive announced 1,072 Lyft employees would be laid off, affecting nearly a third of the rideshare company’s staff, while asking remaining employees to come into the office more often.
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The Lyft move comes as another player joins the U.S. rideshare market. InDrive, which differentiates itself through its bid-based business model, made its U.S. debut in South Florida last week.
The privately owned international ridehailing company launched in 2012 and has expanded into 48 countries around the world. The company, which surpassed a $1 billion valuation in 2021, says that it's the world's fastest-growing online ridesharing service with 175 million app downloads.
Adam Warner, inDrive operations strategy director of America, isn't concerned about competitors Uber and Lyft, which have been going head-to-head to dominate the rideshare industry.
Warner believes inDrive's unique price model, in which passengers and drivers negotiate and agree on the price of each ride, will set the company up for success as it kicks off in the Sunshine State and later expand to other markets in the U.S.
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As of the opening bell on Monday, Lyft shares are up roughly 15.8% the last month after rising around 12.6% the last three months.
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FOX Business reporter Daniella Genovese and Reuters contributed to this article.
