With the departure of Uber from Southeast Asia, Grab has become the only go-to for those of us that rely on ride-sharing services to get us around. However, that’s all about to change as a new ride-sharing company that goes by the name of Arcade City, is launching their app and service in Southeast Asia on April 16.
Arcade City has a different take on the ride-sharing business by going with a decentralized route. Unlike Uber and Grab’s method of being the middle-man between the passenger and the driver and overseeing all issues that arise, Arcade City directly connects you to the driver without going through the company. How this works is by establishing cooperatives or as the company is calling them, Guilds. These members create customized policies for their local area, allowing them to build their own businesses without the interference of big corporates. The company had an initial test launch in the Philippines in August 2017 and has managed to build a large network of drivers.
Arcade City payment method is also unique, they are going with a peer-to-peer payment method. This means that the payment transaction will be done between the driver and passenger without the company interfering. How will the drivers know to charge the users is still unknown. The mobile app will be available for download on Android and iOS on Monday, April 16.
