Didi president says China's ride-hailing giant is 'definitely going global'

[SAN FRANCISCO] Didi Chuxing, the Chinese ride-hailing company that allied itself with Uber Technologies Inc this year, said it plans to expand to other countries.

"We're definitely going global," Jean Liu, Didi's president, said on stage at the Vanity Fair New Establishment Summit in San Francisco.

"We're a big sponsor and a big believer in local players. If there are no existing local players, we'll go there by ourselves. We will play a global game."

Didi, with a valuation of US$35 billion, is an investor in Grab, Uber's biggest competitor in South-east Asia; Ola, the largest ride-hailing company in India; and Lyft Inc, the main Uber rival in the US. Almost three months ago, Didi Chuxing said it would acquire Uber's China operations, and the two companies became shareholders in each other's businesses.

Ms Liu played a key role in Didi's negotiations with Uber in China.

In China, Didi said it facilitates more than 20 million rides per day. "If you look at this industry globally, it's in the infancy stage," Ms Liu said.

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