Our personal best: Record ridership drives 45% growth in first half of 2023

Big news over here. We’re excited to unveil new financial and ridership figures from the first half of 2023.

Drum roll please… more people rode Lime over the first six months of 2023 than ever before over a first or second half period. Thanks to such amazing ridership we reached more than $250 million in gross bookings, a 45% increase over the same period in 2022. With such strong ridership globally, paired with improvements to our business, we achieved positive Adjusted EBITDA of $27 million during this period, the first time we have reached positive Adjusted EBITDA in the first half of any year to date, with a margin improvement of 29 percentage points. We also reached positive EBITDA on an unadjusted basis during this period. The H1 results reflect our continued momentum following a full year of Adjusted EBITDA in 2022. This is proof that demand for shared e-bikes and e-scooters continues to grow around the world as cities and riders prioritize more sustainable transportation that is safe, convenient and affordable.

"Coming off a record year for Lime, we are proud to have achieved an acceleration in our strong performance in 2023 riders around the world are demonstrating strong demand for low-cost, reliable and emissions-free transportation. We’re encouraged that cities also recognize this as they continue to welcome and expand e-bike and e-scooter programs globally. Our year-over-year revenue growth and ability to operate profitably are strong signals for the long-term viability of Lime's business. This record first half is a strong endorsement of our investments in in-house hardware design, operational excellence and cultivating strong relationships with cities."

- Wayne Ting, CEO of Lime

We’re off to the best start of any year in our history. The growth in 2023 is powered by our highest ever ridership in a single quarter, with more than 40 million trips taken globally in Q2 alone, beating our previous record quarter of Q3 in 2022. And it will only get better. This record ridership stems from our strong growth within existing markets and into new markets, leading to higher average trips-per-vehicle-per-day and improved supply and reliability for riders.

Our continued success relies upon investments in three core areas over the past several years, leading to widely differentiated outcomes:

  • Hardware innovation

  • Tech-enabled operations

  • Winning competitive tenders

Our ability to improve operating margins stems from investments in hardware development and operational capacity. Riders love our Gen4 fleet of e-bikes and e-scooters for their improved handling, sleek look and overall practicality. They require less frequent repairs, allow for streamlined operations due to their shared swappable battery, and now comprise nearly 75% of our deployed vehicles globally. Our Gen4 fleet is expected to last upwards of five years and feature a modular design so parts can be replaced quickly, leading to greater availability and reliability for riders.

The benefits from in-house hardware design pair with operational improvements that include greater standardization between warehouses globally, investments in back-end software to optimize tasks that drive revenue, and improving vehicle positioning so they’re available where and when riders need them.

We have also demonstrated sustained excellence in successfully competing for and retaining competitive operating permits in major cities, combined with significant investment in expanding our e-scooter and e-bike fleet in existing markets. This year, we have submitted tenders for and won more than 90% of competitive permits globally, including London, New York City, Milan, Rome, Madrid, Lille, Oslo, Vienna and more. Once we win permits, we’ll continue to invest to expand its service via fleet cap increases granted by cities because of our high level of operational compliance.

1. Adjusted EBITDA represents EBITDA excluding certain items, such as stock-based compensation and non-recurring restructuring and settlement costs.

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