UAE car-sharing platform ekar expands to Malaysia

ekar, the Middle East’s personal mobility company has announced its expansion in Southeast Asia with the launch of its car subscription service in Malaysia.

The company’s car subscription service will be available, starting in Kuala Lumpur and followed by a roll-out strategy across Malaysia towards the end of 2022.

Customers are encouraged to subscribe to cars using ekar’s ‘Self-drive Super App’ since they have the option of renting cars weekly or monthly (for up to twelve months) with no down payment or long-term commitment.

“The product-market fit for tech-enabled and cost-effective personal mobility is irrefutable. The Malaysian Finance Minister has stated that largely due to car ownership, 40% of millennials spent more than they earned, and 47 per cent of Malaysian youths had high credit card debt. That, together with the smartphone penetration and internet usage, makes using ekar’s car subscription service a no-brainer,” commented the company’s chief commercial officer, Stas Betin.

“ekar is capable of launching a new market within a month. Built modularly, ekar’s Mobility OS can easily expand the number of our product verticals available in each market, making localisation efficient. That, together with our global support infrastructure, ensures seamless integration with relevant stakeholders to create optimal personal mobility solutions,” added Vilhelm Hedberg, founder, ekar.

As an added benefit to the user, ekar’s subscription cars, which are tech-enabled cars from existing fleet owners and car rental companies, come with insurance, maintenance, and roadside assistance and can be switched, traded up, or returned at any time. A user selects a desired model on the ekar app, and a sterilised car is door-delivered within a two-hour window.

ekar expects to launch peer-to-peer carshare in Malaysia by the end of 2022.

Last year, ekar launched its car subscription service in Saudi Arabia. The company activated subscriptions within its self-drive super app in Saudi Arabia in partnership with several car rental companies.

Read: UAE’s ekar launches car subscription service in Saudi Arabia

Customers who prefer not to own a car but still want the convenience of having one can take advantage of Ekar’s subscription leasing.