The recent financial disruption has forced SWVL to discontinue its intracity shuttle service in major cities across Pakistan. In an official notification, SWVL announced that it is discontinuing intracity rides in Multan, Faisalabad, Islamabad, Lahore, and Karachi. It further added that its city-to-city and business-to-business travel service is still available.
The Discontinuity of Intracity Shuttle Service is Predicted to Reduce Central Costs
Moreover, the company has not commented on whether it is a temporary or permanent suspension of the intracity shuttle service. This news comes immediately after reports of SWVL’s plan to reduce 32 percent of its workforce. This approach is a part of the company’s portfolio optimization strategy to boost efficiency and reduce central costs in order to accelerate profitability and achieve positive cash flow by 2023.
Moreover, Swvl seeks to propose monetary, non-monetary, and job placement support to enable a seamless transition of its employees to new occupations after the shutdown of the intracity shuttle service. SWVL’s portfolio optimization program includes:
- Continuation and organic and inorganic growth of Transport as a Service (TaaS) and Software as a Service (SaaS) business across all markets.
- Focus of the Business to Consumer (B2C) business on Egypt and Pakistan, currently the company’s highest B2C revenue contribution and profitability markets.
- Optimizing B2C route networks in certain cities as well as headcount and operating expenses.
- Continued investment in developing the Company’s proprietary technology stack.
Several Tech Companies Are Cutting Back on Their Resources
In addition to this, SWVL isn’t the only corporation to face issues in Pakistan as the country’s tech-based service sector is going through a rough phase due to poor financial conditions forcing multiple players to lay off their resources in an attempt to stay on board.
Read more: SWVL to Lay off 32% of its Workforce
