Easy Taxi Planning to Expand Its Reach in Latin America for 2016

The taxi booking app EasyTaxi has its eye on a massive expansion across Latin America this 2016 after the Rocket Internet-backed mobile software catered 83 million commuters all over the region last year.

According to a report posted in TNooz, EasyTaxi CEO and co-founder Dennis Wang emphasized the company's opportunity to serve Latin Americans further with the upcoming expansion.

"The LatAm taxi market is still virtually untapped as taxi app rides represent less than 5% of total rides in the region," he explained.

He further explained that with the support from lawmakers in Latin America's biggest capitals of Sao Paulo, Mexico, Lima and Bogota, the app is set to exceed its current market share. It has already reached 90 percent in Colombia alone since it merged with the Colombian Tappsi in December.

Considered to be the pioneer in online taxi services in Latin America, EasyTaxi is currently working on improving its products and services by spending more on the technology, Wang explained.

According to Wang, EasyTaxi is "payment agnostic," and is considering the wide array of payment options -- credit card, cash, in-app, and corporate bookings in an effort to have an edge over other taxi booking apps.

The app is currently available in 30 countries and 420 cities all over the world, including Jordan, Egypt, Kenya, Nigeria and Saudi Arabia, where the app has earned the highest market share outside of Latin America. There are about 20,000 drivers in Jeddah, Dammam, and the Saudi capital, Riyadh.

The company is also planning to add a cashless payment option for EasyTaxi users in Egypt as it teams up with Mastercard.

Wang further explained that while the company, like Uber and Didi Kuaidi, may experience different levels of profitability based on the amount of investment, EasyTaxi maintains growth as its top priority.

"Easy Taxi ... expects revenues to cover for operational costs already in 2016. Yet, despite high prospects for early break-even, Easy Taxi won't sacrifice its growth, which the company believes is still a top priority. This is likely to translate into more marketing initiatives and promotions towards users in the current year," he stated.

Aside from being dubbed as one of the "Top Apps of 2014" by both Google and Apple, EasyTaxi is also the holder of awards such as Startup Farm Rio 2011, IBM SmartCamp Brazil 2011, Startup Weekend Rio 2011, TNW Awards Brazil 2012, LIDE Entrepreneurship Award 2013 and the Spark Awards 2013.

It highlights faster and safer transactions with verified drivers as well as a "seamless experience" with payment modes.