Lyft to buy taxi app FREENOW for $197M to enter Europe

Ride-hailing giant Lyft said it has agreed to acquire FREENOW, a German multi-mobility app with ride-hail at its core, from BMW and Mercedes-Benz Mobility for about $197 million in cash. The acquisition opens up the European market to Lyft for the first time. The company has only operated in the U.S. and Canada since it launched in 2012, compared to its biggest rival Uber, which operates globally.  FREENOW operates in nine countries and more than 150 cities across Austria, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, ...