Shi Yi, the 29-year-old millionaire founder and chairman of beleaguered bike-sharing operator oBike, now says any extra fees imposed on the company by the authorities "might affect" its ability to refund its users' outstanding deposits.

It was recently reported that the Land Transport Authority (LTA) has given the Chinese-owned Singapore company till Wednesday, July 4, to clear its 70,000-strong fleet of bicycles from Singapore's public spaces.

If they (oBike or its liquidator, who they're reportedly still trying to appoint) fail to do so by then, it will have to cough up towing and storage fees levied by the LTA in doing it for them.

Shi told Channel NewsAsia in an email on Tuesday that oBike has started removing its bicycles in Singapore and is working closely with the LTA to meet its requirements.

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Deposits amount to S$6.3 million

The debt-ridden firm, which has already been slapped with fines of at least S$122,100 by some town councils here, still owe oBike users here their deposits of between S$19 and S$49.

He reportedly added that the total amount oBike owes to its users in deposits amounted to US$4.6 million (S$6.3 million):

Shi Yi's latest response comes after an official statement from oBike released six days after it pulled out of the Singapore market on June 25, which says it is trying to refund users their deposits.

Will look for a way to refund deposits

Nevertheless, Shi reportedly said oBike is "proactively looking for a solution to start the refund process".

He said:

"We will inform (users) once (the refund process) is finalised...

We understand that it has caused inconvenience... to people.

We apologise for any inconvenience caused and we are committed to fix the issue."

Interestingly, he added that oBike may consider returning to Singapore if "regulations are business friendly", or if oBike is able to develop a "new business plan" to meet the LTA's requirements for an operating license.

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