SoCar adds simple app-based business car rental program prior to IPO

[Source: SoCar]

South Korea’s top car-sharing service provider SoCar on Monday has launched a business car rental program SoCar Business Plan with a minimum contract period of a month to draw stronger corporate demand before it goes public on the Kospi bourse.

Employees of membership companies can employ car without a contact with the car rental department by using the smartphone app, according to SoCar. Administrators also can manage the car usage record, fuel bills and highway toll fees at once with an automated management system and vehicle repair and maintenance with SoCar’s regular visiting care service.

Recently, big conglomerates, local governments and public institutions are reducing the number of cars they own for business purposes amid a delay in new car deliveries from protracted chip shortages and the global-wide ESG drive.

SoCar expects such move will help its business car rental program become a new growth engine. It has run the program before the official launch to reflect the demand from companies and governments with a fleet of 200 cars.

With its B2B product SoCar Business, the company has provided about 2,000 cars every week based on its management skills and knowhow for a large fleet since the launch in 2019

SoCar in August becomes the first unicorn company in Korea to go public on the Kospi by offering 4.55 million initial shares in the band of 34,000-45,000 won ($35.07). When priced at top end, the new stock will command a market cap of 204.8 billion won.

Book-building for pricing is due on August 1-2, and retail investors will be invited to subscribe to the new shares on August 8-9.

Founded in 2011, SoCar has fast expanded its car-sharing business to command a market share of 70 percent in Korea. It has secured a fleet of 18,000 vehicles with 4,200 SoCar zones for car pick-up and drop-off. As of May, about 8 million users are registered to its service in Korea, nearly one-fourth of the entire population with driver’s license.

[ⓒ Maeil Business Newspaper & mk.co.kr, All rights reserved]