Lyft’s talks with London administrators began in December and were headed by the company’s Chief Strategy Officer Raj Kapoor and global strategy chief Mike Masserman. Apart from three personal meetings with London administrators, Lyft also held two phone calls with various local officials in the last 12 months. It’s currently unclear whether Lyft would have an easier time of launching a UK operation than Uber seeing how the majority of the latter’s opponents were local taxi unions and politicians which would likely be against any new ride-hailing service in the city.

While Lyft may be exploring the idea of becoming a company with a multinational presence, Uber is seemingly reassessing its position and looking to repair its damaged relations with the London administration. The company is currently in the process of appealing the Transport for London’s decision and will be allowed to continue operating in the city until all of its legal remedies to do so are exhausted or it successfully obtains a new license.