How ride-hailers around the world are coping with the virus pummeling
A staff member disinfects a vehicle at a Didi Chuxing service centre, in Beijing, China, on February 27.
PHOTO: Reuters
PUBLISHED ONJune 12, 2020 1:41 AM
Battered by lockdowns and movement restrictions in the coronavirus pandemic, ride-hailers around the world are cutting jobs and pay, and slashing other costs.
In South-East Asia, the pandemic has raised doubts whether the ride-hailing firms can maintain their promise of improving the lives of millions of poor.
Here's a look at what the companies are doing to tackle the fallout of the coronavirus.
1. Didi Chuxing
Didi Chuxing, China's biggest ride-hailing company which counts SoftBank Group as a backer, saw its ride sharing orders in China recover this month to levels seen over the same period a year earlier, its CEO said on June 8.
The recovery in orders comes as most of China has reopened for business. China, where the coronavirus emerged late last year, has seen a sharp fall in cases since March.
2. Uber
Global ride-hailer Uber Technologies Inc said in June that trip requests were gradually picking up, but still remained significantly below prior year levels, as several countries start to lift coronavirus-led restrictions.
Uber announced last month it would concentrate on its core businesses in ride-hailing and food delivery and cut 23 per cent of its workforce in an attempt to become profitable despite the coronavirus pandemic.
3. Lyft
US ride-hailing firm Lyft Inc said last week that rides on its platform rose 26 per cent in May from the previous month, with strong growth from cities where coronavirus-induced restrictions have been eased.
Lyft said in a regulatory filing it cut 17 per cent of its staff and furloughed hundreds in May.
4. Ola
SoftBank-backed Indian ride-hailing company Ola said in May it would cut 1,400 jobs, or about 35 per cent of its workforce, as it navigates a strict coronavirus lockdown that has halted 95 per cent of its business.
5. Bolt
Bolt, a popular ride-sharing system in Eastern Europe and Africa, said in May that it has raised €100 million (S$157 million) and would use it to boost market share in a sector hurt by Covid-19.
6. Grab
SoftBank-backed Grab, which operates in eight South-East Asian countries, said in May that it is preparing for a potentially "long winter”, as the ride-hailing firm’s revenue takes a hit from the coronavirus outbreak.
The company said the pandemic was the single biggest crisis to affect the eight-year-old company, with volumes in its ride-hailing business down by double-digit percentages in some countries.
It offered some staff unpaid leave and asked senior executives to take salary cuts.
7. Gojek
Gojek announced last week that Facebook Inc and PayPal Holdings Inc had invested in its funding round.
The ride-hailer and payments company operates in four markets, but is focused on Indonesia, which is slowly easing lockdowns in its biggest cities.
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