Report: Lime Likely to Lose $300 Million in 2019

Investigative journalism by The Information reveals troubling financial data at one of the largest and most visible electric scooter rental companies.

1 minute read

October 23, 2019, 7:00 AM PDT

By James Brasuell @CasualBrasuell


Lime Scooters

Portland Bureau of Transportation / Flickr

The electric scooter rental company Lime "is losing money nearly as quickly as it expands in part because the company’s vehicles tend to break down before they can generate much cash," according to an article by Cory Weinberg that is partially hidden behind a paywall.

"Lime’s operating loss is likely to surpass $300 million this year, on more than $420 million of gross revenue, according to financial projections viewed by The Information," according to the article.

The company is hoping to improve the reliability of its scooters and raise revenue to $1 billion next year to improve on this year's performance. But the story calls to mind the experience of Uber, which earlier this year was revealed to have lost $5 billion in one quarter this year. In 2016, Uber lost $2.2 billion in three quarters, so Lime should be concerned that losses could get worse before they get better.

Monday, October 21, 2019 in The Information

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I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

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