Bike-sharing firms must focus on users

A growing number of subscribers to Ofo, one of the biggest bike-sharing platforms, have been complaining about the difficulties in getting their security deposits back. How to ensure the deposits are returned to the subscribers at a time when the bike-sharing bubble has burst? Two experts share their views on the issue with China Daily’s Yao Yuxin. Excerpts follow:

Despite the Ministry of Transport issuing a specific nationwide guideline in August 2017 for the development of the shared-bike business, asking bicycle-sharing companies to open special accounts for the users’ security deposits to prevent the illicit use of the funds, a growing number of users have been complaining that they can’t get their refund. Ofo subscribers are the latest to lodge such complaints.

The bike-sharing startups accepted the government’s regulation last year and subsequently opened special accounts. But the fact that many users still can’t get their refund even after bikesharing companies went bankrupt shows these accounts are not working, mainly because of a lack of strict supervision on the operation of bike-sharing businesses.

In reality, many bike-sharing startups incurred huge losses even at the early stage thanks to their desperation to expand their markets and their immature business model. Once they ran out of cash to keep the business running, embezzling of funds started. Some companies even made users deposit money for other investments without informing the latter of the purpose.

And once these bike-sharing companies’ capital chain broke up, it became almost impossible for the users to get their deposits refunded, except when the companies filed for liquidation. Given the limited assets left after bankruptcy and their proportionate distribution among creditors, customers with small amounts of share can’t expect much in return and few of them have the initiative to use legal means to get their money back.