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Lyft Expands in Europe, Diversifies by Acquiring FREENOW

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Lyft Expands in Europe, Diversifies by Acquiring FREENOW
News

News

Lyft Expands in Europe, Diversifies by Acquiring FREENOW

2025-04-16 19:30 Last Updated At:19:50

SAN FRANCISCO & HAMBURG, Germany--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Apr 16, 2025--

Lyft, Inc. (Nasdaq: LYFT), a leading ride hailing marketplace, today announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire FREENOW, a leading European multi-mobility app with a taxi offering at its core, from BMW Group and Mercedes-Benz Mobility for approximately €175 million or $197 million* in cash. FREENOW will continue operating as it does today, with its talented leadership team and employees in place to drive growth across 9 countries and over 150 cities across Ireland, the United Kingdom, Germany, Greece, Spain, Italy, Poland, France, and Austria. The transaction is expected to close in the second half of 2025, subject to customary closing conditions.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250415370847/en/

Lyft found in FREENOW a partner to immediately fuel its growth strategy, unlock potential for partners, and level up the experience for drivers and riders alike. This marks Lyft’s most significant expansion outside North America, nearly doubling Lyft’s total addressable market to more than 300 billion personal vehicle trips per year, increasing annualized Gross Bookings by approximately €1 billion, diversifying revenue streams, and supporting Lyft’s multi-year targets.

“We’re on an ambitious path to build the best, most customer-obsessed mobility platform in the world, and entering Europe is an important step in our growth journey,” said David Risher, CEO of Lyft. “We found the perfect partner in FREENOW and can learn a lot from the team. FREENOW's local-first approach mirrors Lyft's values and embodies our purpose — to serve and connect.”

FREENOW brings market-leading European taxi expertise, fleet technology and strong relationships with regulators, unions and taxi fleet operators in every market. Lyft brings best-in-class marketplace expertise and customer-obsessed features. The business models are complementary and together will serve over 50 million combined annual riders, with plans to deliver a better product experience, improve service levels, strengthen fleet management capabilities, and bring greater global opportunities to existing and potential partners.

In Europe, the taxi aggregation business is strong and growing. Approximately 50% of taxi bookings in Europe still happen offline, but customers are hungry for more online bookings. FREENOW is primed to capitalize on that opportunity. FREENOW is the leading taxi platform in several major European cities, including Dublin, London, Athens, Berlin, Barcelona, Madrid, and Hamburg, with luxury vehicles making up a significant portion of its fleet. Taxis accounted for approximately 90% of FREENOW’s Gross Bookings in 2024 and will continue to be the backbone of FREENOW’s business.

“Joining forces with Lyft is a powerful step forward for FREENOW and marks the beginning of an ambitious new phase—one where we strengthen our role as a leading force in European mobility,” said FREENOW CEO Thomas Zimmermann. “Lyft's strong, customer-first track record aligns perfectly with our deep roots in the taxi industry, and together we will push boundaries and raise expectations for fleet owners, taxi drivers, and riders across the continent. We stand with the industry—not above it—and remain proud partners of the community. This collaboration is about combining our strengths, learning from each other, and scaling what works best. We sincerely thank our former shareholders for their trust and enduring partnership throughout the years.”

The strategic acquisition is aligned with Lyft’s disciplined capital allocation strategy of investing in attractive growth opportunities with a customer-obsessed bias. The announcement follows a record-breaking year in 2024 for Lyft, with industry-leading service levels in Q4, record Gross Bookings, GAAP profitability, and record cash flow generation.

What’s next

While there will be no immediate changes to FREENOW’s customer experience, over time, new benefits will be made available to FREENOW drivers and riders. For drivers in many markets, that may look like more transparency around their earnings such as when to expect incentives and real-time information on the best times to drive. For riders, that may look like more consistent pricing, faster matching, and new features and modes. The companies will also focus on integration for riders to seamlessly use either app across the Atlantic, whether they’re in North America or Europe.

*$197 million is based on the EUR/USD foreign exchange rate on the date of signing.

Advisors

Guggenheim Securities, LLC is acting as financial advisor to Lyft, and Baker McKenzie is acting as its legal advisor. Lazard is acting as financial advisor to BMW Group and Mercedes-Benz Mobility, and DLA Piper is acting as their legal advisor.

Investor Presentation

The companies have published a presentation to provide an overview of the transaction, which is available on Lyft’s investor relations website at https://investor.lyft.com.

Lyft will hold an investor call in May when it reports Q1 2025 earnings.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Forward-looking statements generally relate to future events or Lyft's future financial or operating performance. In some cases, you can identify forward looking statements because they contain words such as "may," "will," "should," "expects," "plans," "anticipates,” “going to,” "could," "intends," "target," "projects," "contemplates," "believes," "estimates," "predicts," "potential" or "continue" or the negative of these words or other similar terms or expressions that concern Lyft's expectations, strategy, priorities, plans or intentions. Forward-looking statements in this release include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the acquisition of FREENOW including, the timing of the closing of the transaction, and the expected benefits of the transaction, including the timing of those benefits, the financial impact of the transaction on Lyft, the impact of the transaction on Lyft’s addressable market, partnership opportunities, the future operations of FREENOW and plans and expectations for the combined company. Lyft’s expectations and beliefs regarding these matters may not materialize, and actual results in future periods are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected, including risks related to the macroeconomic environment, risks and uncertainties related to the pending acquisition of FREENOW, including the failure to obtain, or delays in obtaining, required regulatory approvals, the risk that such approvals may result in the imposition of conditions that could adversely affect Lyft or the expected benefits of the proposed transaction, or the failure to satisfy any of the closing conditions to the proposed transaction on a timely basis or at all; costs, expenses or difficulties related to the acquisition of FREENOW; failure to realize the expected benefits and synergies of the proposed transaction in the expected timeframes or at all; and change in the regulatory environment that impact Lyft. The forward-looking statements contained in this release are also subject to other risks and uncertainties, including those more fully described in Lyft's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), including in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the full fiscal year 2024 that was filed with the SEC on February 14, 2025. The forward-looking statements in this release are based on information available to Lyft as of the date hereof, and Lyft disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, except as required by law. This press release discusses “customers”. For rideshare, there are two customers in every car - the driver is Lyft’s customer, and the rider is the driver’s customer. We care about both.

About Lyft

Whether it’s an everyday commute or a journey that changes everything, Lyft is driven by our purpose: to serve and connect. In 2012, Lyft was founded as one of the first ridesharing communities in the United States, and is available today in the United States and Canada. Now, millions of drivers have chosen to earn on billions of rides. Lyft offers rideshare, bikes, and scooters all in one app — for a more connected world, with transportation for everyone.

About FREENOW

FREENOW is Europe’s multi-mobility app with taxi offering at its core, available in 9 European countries and over 150 cities. FREENOW users can access various mobility services within a single app, including taxis, private hire vehicles (PHV) or ridesharing, carsharing, car rental, eScooters, eBikes, eMopeds and public transport.

Lyft Expands in Europe, Diversifies by Acquiring FREENOW

Lyft Expands in Europe, Diversifies by Acquiring FREENOW

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Recent immigration arrests at courthouses around the country have advocates worried

2025-05-01 21:14 Last Updated At:21:20

SEATTLE (AP) — Inside a Virginia courthouse, three immigration agents in plainclothes — one masked — detained a man who had just had misdemeanor assault charges dismissed. They declined to show identification or a warrant to the man, and one threatened to prosecute horrified witnesses who tried to intervene, cellphone video shows.

In North Carolina, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement confirmed it arrested four people at a county courthouse, according to local media reports, prompting the sheriff to express concerns about a lack of communication from the agency as well as about disruption to court proceedings.

Inside a courthouse in New Hampshire, a pair of agents tackled a Venezuelan man outside an elevator, flattening an older man with a cane in the process. And in Boston, an ICE agent detained a man who was on trial. A municipal court judge held the agent in contempt over the arrest, but the order was later overturned by a federal judge.

The flurry of immigration enforcement at courthouses around the country in the past month — already heavily criticized by judicial officials and lawyers — has renewed a legal battle from President Donald Trump's first term as advocates fear people might avoid coming to court.

It's drawing further attention with last Friday's arrest of Judge Hannah Dugan in Wisconsin. The FBI arrested Dugan on charges that she tried to help a defendant evade waiting federal agents by letting him leave her courtroom through a jury door.

“Some of these judges think they are beyond and above the law and they are not, and we’re sending a very strong message today,” Attorney General Pam Bondi said during an appearance on Fox News after the arrest.

Lena Graber, senior staff attorney with the Immigrant Legal Resource Center, told The Associated Press that she’s aware of at least a dozen recent immigration arrests at courthouses around the country.

“The historical context is really important,” Graber said. “This is something that was not part of ICE’s practice until the first Trump administration, and people were shocked.”

ICE long had a general practice of not arresting people at certain locations, including schools, hospitals, courthouses and churches. But during the first Trump administration, the agency adopted a policy explicitly allowing courthouse arrests of “specific, targeted aliens,” arguing that it was especially important in “sanctuary” jurisdictions where officials do not notify the agency before releasing immigrants facing deportation cases.

Courthouse immigration arrests jumped, drawing condemnation from judicial officials and legal organizations, as well as lawsuits from some states and the adoption of bills seeking to block the practice.

Dugan’s case is similar to one brought during the first Trump administration against a Massachusetts judge who was accused of helping a man sneak out a back door of a courthouse to evade a waiting immigration officer. A judge in Oregon faced similar allegations — though not an arrest or criminal charges -- in 2017.

The chief justices of some states, including California and Washington, asked ICE to stop, saying fear of arrest would keep crime victims and witnesses from showing up in court. In one well-publicized case, agents in Texas arrested a woman while she was obtaining a protection order against an alleged abuser.

The Biden administration imposed restrictions on courthouse immigration arrests, but they were quickly undone when Trump returned to office this year.

Under guidance issued Jan. 21, ICE officials are allowed to carry out immigration enforcement in or near courthouses if they believe someone they’re trying to find will be there. Whenever possible, the agents are supposed to make arrests in nonpublic areas, to coordinate with courthouse security and to avoid disrupting court operations.

Teodoro Dominguez Rodriguez, identified by ICE as a Honduran national, was confronted and arrested by immigration enforcement officers after he left a Charlottesville courtroom April 22. It was the second immigration arrest at the court that day.

The first wasn’t recorded, but as word spread, Nick Reppucci, who heads the public defender’s office there, scrambled staff to the courthouse. They captured Dominguez Rodriguez’s arrest on camera.

The three agents, one in a balaclava-style ski mask, ignored demands from observers to show badges or a warrant, the video shows. One agent threatened to have the U.S. attorney’s office prosecute two women who tried to place themselves between the agents and Dominguez Rodriguez.

Sherriff Chan Bryant confirmed that the agents had shown badges and paperwork to a bailiff beforehand. But Albemarle County Commonwealth’s Attorney Jim Hingeley criticized the officers for failing to identify themselves while making the arrest.

“Bystanders, or the person being arrested, might have violently resisted what on its face appeared to be an unlawful assault and abduction,” Hingeley said in an emailed statement.

Reppucci decried the “normalization happening here, where federal law enforcement are at this point grabbing people without being required to show that person any form of identification.”

In a written statement, ICE stood behind the actions of the officers, “who are trained to assess and prosecute apprehensions in a manner that best ensures operational success and public safety.”

The Associated Press was unable to locate relatives who might speak on Dominguez Rodriguez’s behalf, and it was not clear if he had an attorney representing him.

Repucci stressed the impact arrests like Dominguez Rodriguez's could have on people coming to court, a place he said is supposed to be where “disputes are resolved in an orderly, peaceful manner.”

“People in divorce proceedings, people with civil disputes, custody hearings, potential witnesses, all are going to be less likely to come to court,” he said.

Claire Rush in Portland, Oregon, and Rebecca Santana in Washington contributed to this report. Hollingsworth reported from Mission, Kansas.

FILE - People gather to demonstrate the arrest of Judge Hannah Dugan, outside the Federal courthouse in Milwaukee, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Devi Shastri, File)

FILE - People gather to demonstrate the arrest of Judge Hannah Dugan, outside the Federal courthouse in Milwaukee, April 25, 2025. (AP Photo/Devi Shastri, File)

FILE - A sign is posted outside of county Judge Hannah Dugan's courtroom at the Milwaukee County courthouse, April 25, 2025, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Andy Manis, File)

FILE - A sign is posted outside of county Judge Hannah Dugan's courtroom at the Milwaukee County courthouse, April 25, 2025, in Milwaukee. (AP Photo/Andy Manis, File)

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