CAREEM, a UAE-based chauffeur-driven car booking service, has announced that STC Ventures, backed by Saudi Telecom Company, recently led a $1.7 million investment round in the company that also included prominent regional angel investors to expand its car booking service across the Middle East.
Careem, currently serving Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Doha and Riyadh on careem.com and through its mobile apps, plans to use the cash infusion to strengthen its operating platform and expand to other cities of the Middle East.
Mudassir Sheikha, co-founder of Careem, based in Dubai, notes: “This investment will accelerate our regional expansion plans and further strengthen our operating platform that needs to cater to relatively complex logistics of the region.”
Careem, which was started by Magnus Olsson and Mudassir Sheikha, both former consultants at McKinsey & Company, has experienced rapid growth in its first year of operation. Careem’s customers, which include many businesses and relatively affluent consumers, can book a car for a precise time in the future or order it on-demand through Careem’s website or its mobile apps. It currently has 1000+ cars across its network in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Doha and Riyadh.
“Our customer feedback has been fantastic. More than 90 per cent of our customers consistently rate our service five out of five and user referrals are the biggest source of our growth. We are looking forward to making our service available to more countries and consumers across the region,” adds Careem co-founder Magnus Olsson.