Whether grappling with political turmoil, inflation, or exchange rate issues, Daniil Petin, Vice President of Mobility at inDrive (global), remains optimistic about Pakistan’s potential for sustainable growth.
Despite the country’s economic challenges and a bleak near-future outlook, inDrive views Pakistan as a strategic market with substantial untapped potential.
Moody’s Investors Service recently characterised Pakistan’s fiscal strength as “very weak,” citing elevated political risks that constrain its credit profile. This economic distress has led several companies to either shut down or scale back operations. Notable examples include Careem suspending its food delivery business in 2022 and challenges faced by Airlift, among others.
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In an exclusive interview with Business Recorder during his recent visit to Pakistan, Petin acknowledged the economic difficulties but emphasized inDrive’s commitment to developing Pakistan as one of its core markets. Despite challenges faced by other companies, inDrive sees Pakistan as a significant opportunity.
“Pakistan is one of our big bets. For us, we see huge potential. If you look at the macro factors for Pakistan, everything is telling you that it’s going to be growing. Look at the population, which now is over 240 million,” Petin remarked.
A major player in the ride-hailing sector, inDrive considers Pakistan the 6th most important market in its mobility portfolio.
The company’s ride-hailing service operates in 20 cities, while its inter-city service covers 200 cities.
Notably, it holds the second position as the most downloaded ride-hailing app globally and claims the top spot in Pakistan with 6.5 million downloads in 2023.
While inDrive is the most downloaded app, it doesn’t necessarily translate to being the most used.
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However, inDrive maintains the leading position in terms of active users among ride-hailing applications in Pakistan.
“If you look at Pakistan’s GDP from a macro level, its 20% industry, 20% agriculture, and then 60% services.”
“Services are booming, e-commerce is booming and internet technologies are booming. And for us, it’s a good sign that it’s going to be developing further.”
Acknowledging economic challenges such as inflation, increased fuel prices, and currency depreciation, Petin highlighted the importance of a long-term perspective. He expressed confidence in Pakistan’s growth potential, emphasising that these economic fluctuations are just temporary obstacles.
In addressing price concerns, Petin stated, “We haven’t increased our prices dramatically. The prices are being discussed between the client and the driver or the courier, and for mobility, the same mechanics that are at the core of the inDrive business when you negotiate the price.”
Despite challenges, inDrive is witnessing substantial growth in Pakistan, prompting top officials to visit the country frequently to understand the growth patterns and ensure sustainability.
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Petin provided insights into the growth trajectory across various verticals.
“inDrive’s city-to-city more than doubled orders for the service in 2023 and reached more than 300,000 orders for intercity rides in Dec 2023. Couriers are experiencing a 2.6x growth in orders done in 2023 versus 2022, establishing a leading position in the market. In terms of freight, inDrive demonstrated 5x growth in accepted orders in 2023 compared to 2022.”
To further diversify its services, inDrive is testing carpooling for inter-city travel, a relatively new concept in the market.
“Carpooling is something that is quite new to the market. For example, me, you, and Sidra, we are different people in different parts of Karachi. We want to go to Islamabad. So, we go to an application and we say we want to go tonight. And there’s a driver who is willing to give us a trip. So, we connect three of us through the application with the driver, and we go, and basically, for each of us, the cost is going to be lower rather than taking the whole car.”
Additionally, inDrive is exploring parcel delivery within its inter-city spectrum.
Petin described this service, saying, “Imagine you are a driver, you are driving someone, or you’re going yourself to a city from city A to city B. And someone could just give you a little parcel. You can take it and deliver it to city B as well. The cost is going to be pretty low, and it’s going to be fast delivery, like on demand.”
Despite the economic challenges faced by Pakistan, inDrive remains optimistic about the country’s potential for sustained growth, emphasizing its commitment to strategic investments and continued development in key markets.
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