Insights

Shared micro-mobility, once spotlighted as urban last-mile transport, is at a structural inflection point under the dual pressures of profitability crisis and safety regulation.

Samjong KPMG Economic Research Institute's report analyzes the global and Korean market dynamics of micro-mobility, the four key issues facing major players, and three strategic directions for renewed growth.

Markets grew, but so did safety incidents. With shared services expanding, the number of shared kick scooters in Korea jumped from ~70,000 in 2020 to ~290,000 by 2023 — a fourfold increase. Over the same period, accidents involving personal mobility devices rose fivefold in 2023 versus 2019, with fatalities up more than threefold. In a July–August 2024 enforcement push, 73.4% of 9,445 safety violations were no-helmet cases. In May 2025, Seoul City and the Seoul Metropolitan Police announced a “kick-scooter-free zone” initiative banning electric kick-scooter passage on roads in Hongdae (Mapo-gu) and Seocho-gu's academy district — a first in Korea.

Global reshuffling: top-three concentration, Bird's restructuring, Tier-Dott merger. Globally, the top three e-scooter operators — Lime (14%), Lyft (13%), and Bird (11%) — account for ~38% of the market. Bird has been in restructuring since 2022, and Tier merged with Dott in 2024 to launch the combined “Tier and Dott” brand. These moves reflect how heavy device and infrastructure investment costs, volatile utilization, and regulatory uncertainty have eroded profitability.

Four structural constraints and three paths to renewed growth. The report identifies four structural constraints: ① limited revenue model overly reliant on usage fees; ② high utilization volatility by time, season, and regulation; ③ heavy technology and infrastructure investment burden; ④ rising operating and management costs (vehicle collection, redistribution, charging, insurance). Three paths to renewed growth: ① proactive regulatory and safety response (AI-based demand forecasting, integrated IoT operations); ② diversification through B2B and institutional product lines; ③ stronger partnership models via technology alliances and public-sector collaboration (Lyft's integrated public-transit app for Denver, Tier's battery circular model with Remondis).

What this means for M&A. Structural restructuring of micro-mobility creates three deal flows. First, shared-mobility operators worldwide with weakened balance sheets may emerge as sale or merger candidates — particularly those with strong tech and platform capabilities. Second, component and solution companies specialized in battery efficiency, IoT remote management, and smart docking technology will draw attention as bolt-on targets for mobility operators or mobility platforms. Third, as businesses evolve toward integration with public transit and city mobility, companies with smart-city contracting capabilities for municipalities are likely to attract interest from strategic investors.