New from StartUpPakistani
Mobility company SWVL decided this week to completely cease operations in Pakistan after three years of existence due to a global investment slowdown.
TaaS model
SWVL has announced its decision to close its intercity travel sector in Pakistan and lay off its employees on 17 November. On November 18th, the company decided to completely stop operations and close down the TaaS (Transport as a Service) industry. An individual driver can commute on his SWVL bus for inner-city trips under the retail model.
Under a TaaS model, SWVL provided tailored services to corporate clients such as corporations, schools, and other clients running their own transportation programs. Decline in global investment
The company has not disclosed the reason for the closure, but company sources said the difficult decision to close may be due to a global slowdown in investment.
The company operated on a high cash burn model and was in a precarious financial position. SWVL posted a net loss of $161.6 million for his six months ending June 30, 2022.
The company reported a negative operating cash flow of $76.8 million for his six months in 2022.
SWVL derives most of its revenue from Egypt, Pakistan, Kenya, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Argentina and Turkey. Last month, SWVL announced that its businesses achieved profitable or break-even adjusted EBITDA in just five of its top ten revenue-generating countries.
The company is on track to become profitable and expects to be cash flow positive by 2023.
SWVL CEO Mostafa Kandir did not respond to a request for comment on the suspension of operations in Pakistan.