Udrive, the UAE’s homegrown brand offering a pay-per-minute car rental service for UAEs residents and tourists recently accomplished another robust funding round with strategic investments of US$5 million from Cultiv8 and Oman Holding International.
Udrive recorded robust growth during 2021, as it clocked two million trips to date, making it one of the largest rental booking platforms by transactions per car in the region and which is known as the initial platform in the GCC to offer car rentals by the minute.
The new funding round was secured from Cultiv8, the government’s SME and startup investment arm joined by Muscat-based Oman Holdings International, which owns Budget Oman and sees the future of mobility during the funding round.
According to the sources from OHI’s investment, the firm and its knowledge space will power Udrive’s commitment to doubling its annual revenue target and vehicle fleet.
Arif Alawi, CEO of Cultiv8 stated: “Mobility tech is one of the key investment sectors our technology fund focuses on, and UDrive perfectly fits the fund’s guidelines and the fund manager’s ambitions. With the newly formed board and management team, we are excited for Udrive’s continued triple-digit growth across the MENAT region during 2022.”
Oman Holdings International’s Director & CEO Eihab Saleh stated: “We can expect to see radical shifts in how cars will be used both globally and regionally. With a vision to drive this change, Udrive presented its well-articulated plan to achieve successful entry across the new markets making our decision easy to invest in Udrive. We are confident that their product roadmap is expected to significantly change the way cars are ‘consumed’ and utilized in the MENAT region.”
Udrive CEO and co-founder Nicholas Watson stated: “We are digitizing mobility making it easily accessible to everyone. The recent funding secured will help us invest in new technologies as well as grow our offerings into the region this year. We want to provide this service to everyone who can drive, and the reality is customer demand is shifting fast from buying & owning to on-demand and subscription.”
Mr. Watson also added: “We are proud to have well respected and diverse regional business leaders bringing unique experiences and growth potential to the business. Raising money was never about just the funds, but our ability to operate at scale and bring true change to old incumbent business models. We started this concept in the UAE and are now continuing our expansion across the region.”
As per Udrive’s claims, this investment will support Udrive for the upcoming expansion in the region and enhancements of its technology. Additional emphasis will be offered to streamlining the customer experience, an example of which has been the automatic parking payment system, wherein the car determines where it is parked and automatically pays the relevant meter charges.
Udrive addresses the short-term on-demand rentals by adding additional services including free fuel, parking, and comprehensive insurance for all its customers. Its cars can be driven per minute or per day, depending on the needs of the customer. Cars can also be picked up from any location available and can be returned to the same city at any parking location.
Press Release received on Mail
