E-scooter firm Lime pulls out of 12 cities

Electric scooter start-up Lime is laying off around 100 employees and pulling out of 12 cities.

The San Francisco-based company confirmed it would end operations in seven Latin American cities, four US cities, and one European city.

The story was first reported by US news website Axios.

Lime's public e-scooters can be found on streets and in parks in more than 100 cities worldwide. They are accessed via a smartphone app.

Investors have pumped hundreds of millions of dollars into e-scooter firms but the majority of them remain unprofitable.

Lime has been backed by Uber and venture capital firm GV, formerly known as Google Ventures, as well as many others.

"Financial independence is our goal for 2020, and we are confident that Lime will be the first next-generation mobility company to reach profitability," said Brad Bao, Lime chief executive and co-founder, in a statement.

"We are immensely grateful for our team members, riders, Juicers and cities who supported us, and we hope to reintroduce Lime back into these communities when the time is right."

A spokeswoman for Lime told the BBC that 14% of Lime's workforce would be laid off.

Lime will cease operations in the following cities:

• US: Atlanta, Phoenix, San Diego and San Antonio

• Europe: Linz, Austria

• Latin America: Bogotá, Buenos Aires, Montevideo, Lima, Puerto Vallarta, Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo