Dida Chuxing Turns Into China’s Second-Largest Web Driver as Cabs Come Back —Yicai Global
What happened: Ride-hailing platform Dida Chuxing has recorded a jump to 10 million daily active users (DAU) making it the second most popular service following market leader Didi Chuxing. Dida operates taxi hailing and carpooling services. After Didi’s safety scandals including two murders and a number of assaults on female passengers, Chinese are again turning towards taxis.
Why it’s important: Although the number of Dida users is still low compared to the 550 million users that Didi claims to serve, the rise of Dida shows that users have genuine fears over ride-hailing. Last month, China’s Ministry of Transport has discovered a string of safety issues with multiple ride-hailing platforms including weak emergency mechanisms. Didi has also found itself under scrutiny for its monopoly. On the other hand, Dida’s reach is rising. The company recently reached a partnership with Hello TransTech (ex-Hello Bike) allowing its users to hail taxis in 81 cities countrywide.