Lyft, the San Francisco-based ridesharing company that connects citizen drivers with those looking for a lift, announced a $250 million funding round Wednesday.

The funding round included existing investors like Andreessen Horowitz and Founders Fund, but also included new investments from Coatue, Alibaba and Third Point.

The news comes less than a month after Re/code reported a $150 million funding round was on its way, but the company exceeded that total due to interest from investors. That would have pegged the company's value at $700 million, according to Re/code, significantly less than Uber's $3.5 billion valuation after a similar $258 million funding round.

Since launching less than two years ago, Lyft has emerged as a strong competitor to Uber in the ridesharing industry. Lyft expanded from two cities to 30 cities in the last year, and plans to use the investment to continue domestic expansion, and may even expand internationally.

"When we first created the Lyft community, we wanted to make cities feel smaller and more connected by bringing people together through transportation," said John Zimmer, Lyft cofounder, in a statement. "In 20 months since we launched, we’ve seen drivers and passengers redefine the true meaning of community through Lyft in countless ways."

Lyft drivers distinguish themselves with a signature pink mustache included on the front of the driver's car, and the company prides itself on offering a unique driving experience. On Halloween, for example, the company dressed up drivers as zombies in San Francisco as a holiday promotion.

In March, Lyft announced Happy Hour, a new feature that offers lower pricing at times when there are more drivers than passengers on the road, which contrasts with the surge pricing strategy it uses at times when demand is high.

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