European ride-hailing brand Bolt has launched in an East Asian market for the first time, working through partnerships with Hi Taxi, Sinfu Car (幸福車隊) and Nice Taxi (耐斯車隊) to get a foothold in Taiwan.
The company is to put its app in the cars of the three companies and follow a strategy it said would focus on drivers rather than subsidies.
Photo courtesy of Bolt
In an interview with local reporters, Bolt Taiwan general manager Tseng Hsien-hung (曾憲竑) said his company would lower commissions to give drivers higher earnings.
It would also scrap the 3 to 5 percent "platform service fee" for passengers and offer fares cheaper than those of competitors, Tseng said.
In a statement yesterday, the Estonia-founded mobility company said it operates in more than 600 cities across more than 50 countries, offering ride-hailing services and electric scooter and bike rentals to more than 200 million users, with 4.5 million drivers on its platform.
Tseng said the move represented a "major step into a dynamic region," as Bolt seeks to improve Taiwan's transportation ecosystem and raise value for drivers and passengers.
Driver and passenger safety is also a priority of the app, the company said.
Safety measures include profile photos for both drivers and riders, driver background checks, 24/7 customer support and real-time trip tracking.
Additional features include live trip links, trusted contacts for journey monitoring, emergency contact assistance and a four-digit pickup verification code to confirm passenger identity.
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