The problem
In car-centric Gulf cities, buying means locking income into a depreciating asset while traditional rentals impose rigid daily minimums — leaving residents, tourists, and commuters with no economical option for short trips.
How it works
Members register once with a driving licence, ID, and credit card, then find the closest car on the app and book it by the minute, hour, or day. Fuel and public parking are included, and the company keeps expanding the fleet through partnerships with rental and leasing operators whose cars are hosted on its platform.
Pain points
Ownership costs and depreciation for digitally savvy drivers who rarely need a car full-time, inflexible rental counters, and tourist mobility without long-term commitments.
Business model
Time-based rental revenue — per-minute, hourly, daily, and monthly — on its own fleet, plus revenue sharing from partner cars listed on its mobility platform.
Challenges
Each new car ties up capital until utilisation pays it back; per-car economics depend on dense urban demand; and the company shares the kerb with rival carshare operators and ride-hailing apps.
Funding
- Raised: $17.5M Series B led by Polymath Ventures with Al Yemni Group and Audacia Capital — closed June 2019, announced November 2019 (Wamda, MENAbytes).
- Used to launch Riyadh with 600 cars and expand across Saudi cities.
Latest — February 2023
UK-based Rent2Ride agreed to supply new cars to the UAE-headquartered platform and run its UAE car-rental business exclusively on ekar, gaining access to ekar’s base of 350,000 members.