(Yicai Global) Nov. 15 -- Dai Wei, founder and chief executive of bike-sharing provider Ofo, has told employees that the firm will not go bust or undergo restructuring.

"Dai said anything is possible -- Ofo may be bought or merged, but bankruptcy or restructuring will not happen," one worker told state-backed news site The Paper, citing Dai at an internal company meeting at Ofo's Beijing headquarters yesterday. The CEO did not give his reasons behind the statement.

The company meeting was a monthly thing in the past, but had not been held for several months, the employee said, adding that Dai had decided it needed to begin again. Bankruptcy was mentioned in the first query of the question and answer session at the latest meeting, he recalled.

"Some employees talked about the difficulty with deposit refunds and the loss of user. Dai admitted that the refund process had been complicated, but he also said that the deposits are still being refunded, it's just taking longer," he added. "He said money is looking much better than before, but is still tight."

The company has been the focus of several reports claiming major investors Didi Chuxing, the world's largest ride-sharing platform, and e-commerce titan Alibaba Group Holding were looking to take over -- but Ofo has denied all such speculation as it desperately clings on to its claim as the world's largest independent bike sharer.

Those rumors extended to the company going bankrupt in a report on Oct. 31, which said a large brokerage had already drawn up plans for Ofo's reorganization. The firm brushed off the claims as nonsense in a same-day response, saying the company was operating independently and business was as normal.

Not much more than a week earlier, the company that directly operates Ofo, Dongxia Datong Management and Consulting, removed Dai as its legal representative -- the same day the company extended its deposit refund time to as long as 15 days from 10. Dai claimed Ofo made the representative change to streamline office processes.

Editor: James Boynton