Rapido looks at a larger part of the rit-hacking market with four-wheeled pressure

Copyright © HT Digital Streams Limit all rights reserved. Rwit Ghosh 6 min Lees 11 May 2025, 11:23 am Ist Rapido plans to expand in the cabin segment. In summary experts of the industry, despite the presence of incumbents such as Ola and Uber in the market, there is more than enough room for new players such as Rapido.Rapido’s success will depend on three pillars: brand positioning, service quality and safety. Rapido slides gears. The Ride-Hailing Company, known for its bicycle taxis, is now doubling four-wheelers as it chases a larger part of the Indian taxi market, dominated by Ola and Uber. “Currently we are north of 20% market share in four wheelers. We want to be more than 30% Pan-India by the end of 2025,” said Pavan Guntupalli, one of Rapido’s co-founders, in a telephone interview. Rapido also plans to double his presence in cities in India in segments this year. “From our existing 120 cities we go to 500 cities by the end of the year,” says Guntupalli. The company did not respond to Mint’s questions about which cities it targets for its four -wheeled growth, or how much it planned to invest in this expansion. According to research by Equity Advisory Firm Equentis, Uber dominated the CAB category with a market share of 50% from December 2024, with OLA sitting at 34% and Rapido at 14%. The baking of the Rapido subscription model is using its ‘unique’ approach to the ride hair market for its four-wheeler pressure. Unlike the incumbents Ola and Uber, who work on a commission -based model, Rapido has used a subscription -based approach or Saas (software as a service) model. Instead of taking a cut of each ride, Rapido charges his managers – referred to as captains – a fixed monthly fee to use his platform. Drivers have an option to choose between a daily, weekly and monthly subscription. “If you start a technological provider of a captain, he will maximize his earnings himself. He uses the tools we offer and determine how to maximize his earnings at a very nominal cost. That means he has a lot more price,” Guntupalli said. Rapido claims that this model unlocked a new offer of managers who were previously reluctant to join the economy. According to the company, 15% of its manager base consists of new in the sector, withdrawn by the subscription model. “We use an offer that was not interested earlier, thanks to our Saas model,” Guntupalli said. The subscription model was initially introduced with two-wheelers, and later expanded to auto-rick and more recently to four-wheelers. The company now claims to be completing about half a million rides over its four-wheeled segment alone. Ola and Uber declined to comment on the number of taxi rides they clocked on a day. Equentis’s December research last year shows that Uber completed 8,40,000 rides across all categories daily, while OLA does 4,60,000 and does Rapido 3,20,000. Mint was unable to verify the claims made in the report immediately. The incumbents note Ola and Uber have only recently started experimenting with more driver -friendly payment models. For example, Uber still retains online payment options for two -wheelers. The company started launching a Saas model for Rickshaws last year, with the approach only going direct Pan-India in February this year. Similarly, Ola chose to follow the same route with a launch in major metros last year, which has since expanded. Rapido says it gives drivers the whole space when it comes to loading for rides. “Prices as an element are something we don’t control. We give the tools to both riders and captains to better coordinate,” Guntupalli said. The main reason for protest march in the space that is on the standings is the dominance of major incumbents, which often leads to unpopular practices such as prices for boom, said Soujanya Sridharan, senior manager of the public research firm AaArti Institute. In several states, companies have criticized a ride hair, mostly in Maharashtra, where the state’s transport department proposed a captain at the price of boom. Also read: Who pays for canceled rides? Maharashtra’s new taxi rules stir industry Rapido says it gives drivers the whole space when it comes to charging rides. “Prices as an element are something we don’t control. We give the tools to both riders and captains to better coordinate,” Guntupalli said. The filling of a gap industry believes that, despite the presence of incumbents in the market, there is more than enough space for new players. “City infrastructure is challenged, commuting is getting longer, and younger generations screaming away from buying cars, opt for the light of the asset light. Accordingly, Rithoop is an excellent option,” an analyst in the industry said. ‘Success will largely depend on the execution capacity.’ Analysts say Rapido’s success will hang in four -wheelers of three pillars: brand positioning, service quality and safety. “They have to decide whether they will stick to the inner city rides or venture into intercity. Will they focus on ice vehicles, electric vehicles or hybrids? These choices will form their brand,” the analyst noted. Service will play a key role in accepting the company’s four -wheelers. While the company started with a two-wheeler focus, the expectations and demands of users when it comes to taxis, otherwise: Are they clean, work the AC, do managers in time, ask them more money? “The hope is that drivers will use that extra income to reinvest their cars, something that was a problem with other models,” Sridharan said. Rapido believes that his Saas model may be the decisive factor here, given their recurring fee structure. “Our simple philosophy is that if our captains are happy, they will provide a better experience to users themselves,” says Guntupalli. He claims that the scores for driver satisfaction are the highest in the industry. “Drivers try to find a way to provide a better experience to riders to get better ratings and get more orders.” On the safety front, Rapido says it offers reactive and proactive criteria to detect. Riders can share their travel status with contacts, and the company runs the support team for the entire clock. Background controls and police verification are part of the on -board process. “For every late-night drop that happens, we look proactively if the client has reached safely,” Guntupalli said. Also read: Uber’s lifeline off the table for extinguishing, as EV value reduction is disputed. Hedging Rapido’s push in four -wheelers this year is also a hedging against regulatory uncertainty surrounding two -wheelers. Last month, the Karnataka High Court ordered a ban on bicycle taxis unless the state issued specific guidelines. Similar restrictions are considered in other countries. “With bicycle taxis facing increasing regulatory barriers and legitimate challenges in various states, it is only natural for companies like Rapido to diversify their offers. If we are expanded to the quadruple market, they can be entrenched against the uncertainty surrounding the bike taxi sector,” has an operating manager associated with the rit-riding industry. According to the company, there is 50% of Rapido’s turnover, with the rest of three-wheelers and taxis, according to the company. “I think survival is the key and the transition to taxis is a lot of it. You are at least safe in the eyes of the law,” Sridharan said that even if their main income was turned off by regulation, the supplementary revenue from four -wheelers should be enough to “keep the lights”. Rapido, founded in 2015 by Aravind Sanka, Pavan Guntupalli and Rishikesh SR, started as a bike taxi aggregator before setting the tricycle market. The company entered the four -wheeled market in October 2023. Rapido’s latest fundraiser was an investment of $ 30 million as part of a series-e-expanded round led by the Dutch investment firm Prosus. The company raised $ 200 million last year as part of a series-e-round led by Westbridge Capital with participation from Nexus Venture Partners, Invus, Think Investments, Konark Trust and MMPL Trust. At the time, the round of the company’s valuation pushed to $ 1.1 billion, making it a unicorn, a start with a billion dollar valuation. Rapido’s turnover rose from 46.3% to £ 648 in FY24 year-on-year, according to regulatory files obtained by the Business Intelligence Platform Tofler. The Ride aggregator also narrowed its losses of £ 675 in FY23 to £ 371 in FY24. Catch all the corporate news and updates on live currency. Download the Mint News app to get daily market updates and live business news. More Topics #Transports #Uber Technologies Inc Mint Special