Didi Kuaidi, the ride-hailing company that is Uber’s biggest rival in China, has reportedly invested in Lyft, Uber’s main competitor in the U.S.
The Chinese ride-hailing behemoth, which formed from a merger of two companies last year, quietly participated in the round Lyft closed in May, according to The Wall Street Journal, citing anonymous sources. Chinese e-commerce groups Tencent Holdings (TCEHY) and Alibaba Group Holdings (BABA) (already a Lyft investor) also participated.
Despite Uber’s aggressive ambitions in China—the company announced on Tuesday that it plans to enter 100 more cities in the next year—as well as the rest of Asia, local companies are determined to keep up the fight. Didi completed a $3 billion funding round last week, and participated in Singapore-based competitor GrabTaxi’s $350 million round last month. In India, Ola raised $400 million in April.
The push against Uber in Asia has also spilled outside of check writing: in March, Uber’s account on WeChat, a messaging app popular in China and owned by Tencent, was shut down in an effort to roadblock the company. Messaging apps are a popular way to access services like ride-hailing in Asian countries.
Lyft is also reportedly in talks with its Chinese investors about strategies to compete with Uber, according to the WSJ. However, there are no plans to expand to Asia as of yet.
For more on ride sharing startups in Asia, watch this video:
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