Be, a Vietnamese ride-hailing app, is set to enter the crowded market next week.
December 17 will see the arrival of the new car and motorbike app-based service in Hanoi and Saigon, according to Reuters. Be Group, the company behind the app, claims to have secured hundreds of millions of dollars in investment and hopes to have 110,000 drivers across Vietnam by the end of next year. Like its competitors, be will also provide food, delivery, e-payment and financing services.
Be aims to set itself apart from its competitors by offering a 24/7 insurance program for drivers and being transparent and completely compliant in regards to local taxes and regulations, areas that Grab has faced challenges with. At this time there is little information regarding pricing or driver payment schemes.
The development team is entirely Vietnamese, many of whom have international experience. And while Grab and recent arrival Go-Viet both have foreign connections and financial support, all of be's unnamed investors are reportedly domestic, with Vietnam Prosperity Joint Stock Commercial Bank serving as a strategic investor. It joins other local ride-hailing companies such as the rarely-seen Aber and FastGo.
[Photo via Facebook page be]