Didi to expand in Africa; inDriver to compete with Uber & Bolt

Didi to expand in Africa; inDriver to compete with Uber & Bolt

Chinese transport behemoth, Didi Chuxing Technology Co. is growing its presence in the African continent, a move that would put pressure on other market leaders like Bolt and Uber.

Reports state that the Chinese major is ready to enter Nigeria, having started operations in South Africa in March and Egypt only last month.

As per reports, the firm has posted a job position for driving center manager at Lagos in Nigeria - the same position it advertised for when it first entered South Africa and Egypt.

A key indicator about the company's expansion into Nigeria was also hidden in the description of the driver center manager's everyday jobs – to cooperate with procedures and Didi's team to support the productive launch.

However, Didi did not reply to any of the requests or comments on its expansion plans in Africa.

For the uninitiated, Didi is one of the world's most popular ride-hailing service providers. Unlike global competitors like Uber and Bolt, which consider Africa as a vital market in their drive for global supremacy years ago, the Chinese company has stayed away from Africa until now.

Didi, which was founded in 2012, has 600 million users in 17 countries throughout Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Russia. In addition, the firm employs nearly 15 million active drivers each year.

Didi currently holds minority holdings in several global mobility companies, including Lyft and Uber in the United States, Grab in Indonesia, Careem in Egypt, and Ola in India. It also bought Brazil's 99 company.

Meanwhile, Russia’s InDriver is firming up its presence across the same market. The company allows customers to negotiate trip rates with drivers, unlike other taxi-hailing apps with a unilateral pricing structure, making it popular among taxi users.

It is vital to note that Uber still holds a major share in terms of combined market share in Africa. The firm claims to have about 150,000 drivers in eight key markets in Africa.

Source Credit - https://techcrunch.com/2021/10/28/didi-expands-indriver-monetizes-to-rival-uber-bolt-in-africa/