Bird e-scooters sees half billion dollar funding to expand, go public

Shared electric scooter company Bird will soon have more than a half a billion dollars to fund plans to expand even beyond the 200 cities it already operates in worldwide.

The California based firm has announced merger plans with special purpose company Switchback II Corporation which is operated by oil and gas executives seeking a clean energy combination. The deal is only awaiting shareholder approval, a customary step in the process, and includes plans to go public. 

With Bird, Switchback will access $428 million from private investors and $160 million from Fidelity Management & Research Co. and others.  Moreover, according to a report by Fierce Electronics, Bird also has access to an additional $40 million in financing from specialty finance company Apollo Investment and MidCap Financial Trust. 

With the merger, Bird will be valued at US$2.3 billion or nearly three times estimated revenues for 2023, local reports say. 

In 2019, the global market for e-scooters reached more than US$18 billion, a growing mobility option which is certainly taking a bite out of other transport modes.