The interviews, articles and blogs to do with the internationalisation of eCabs and Cuorium Technologies on the eCabs website will fall under this tag.

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Blue officially launches in Romania, powered by eCabs Technologies platform

Blue officially launches in Romania, powered by eCabs Technologies platform

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Caption: eCabs Technologies CEO Matthew Bezzina (second from right) and Stephanie Portanier Mifsud, eCabs Technologies Cities Product Manager (far left) with the Blue leadership in Bucharest, Romania.

Autonom Drive, the largest mobility operator in the Romanian market has selected the eCabs Technologies platform to launch Blue, a new ride hailing service in Bucharest, Romania.

Powered by the eCabs ride-hailing technology platform, Blue is set to be an important player in shaping the ride hailing landscape in Romania, providing a seamless online ride-hailing solution for riders as well as safe and flexible work for drivers.

Blue is launching its service with a fleet of the latest Tesla Models 3 and Y and is available for download on the Google Play Store and Apple App Store.

Blue officially launches in Romania, powered by eCabs Technologies platform

This is the third territory in which the eCabs ride-hailing platform has been deployed, serving as the backbone for local transport businesses to launch their app-based ride hailing service under their own brand.

The use of eCabs technology in Bucharest, follows the launch of Taxi.gr app in Athens, Greece earlier this month.

With a fleet of over 12,000 vehicles and a workforce exceeding 600, Autonom Drive is a leading corporate in the mobility industry, operating in over 33 cities in Romania and Hungary.

An important player in shaping the ride-hailing landscape

Speaking during the official launch event in Bucharest on Wednesday September 27, eCabs Technologies Founder and Chief Executive Officer Matthew Bezzina said the successful roll-out of the service in Romania with a reputable player such as Autonom, is a strong confirmation of the global grade of eCabs’ technology stack and the capabilities of its people.

The Blue mobility service is set to be an important player in shaping the ride-hailing landscape in Romania, with a more efficient, quality-driven service, and like eCabs’ Malta, operating a unique 24/7 customer care and operations centre.

“We are thrilled to be working with Autonom and its team of professionals on this exciting project in the beautiful capital of Bucharest. The growth potential for Blue is evident, also very much fuelled by Autonom’s serious approach to business. I have no doubt that the strength of our technology platform combined with their focus and corporate stature will deliver exceptional results,” Bezzina said.

“This second launch in a few weeks, comes as we are engaged in discussions with corporate partners in key cities in Europe and beyond, to assist them in venturing into ride hailing business through our unique model, offering 13 years of packaged operational knowledge together with our bespoke multi-channel technology,” he added.

Bezzina added that the vision of taking eCabs Technologies to new heights would not have been possible without the support of the Malta Development Bank.

“The MDB has believed in and supported our internationalisation project from the very start, understanding our relentless drive to take our locally built technology overseas. Each city we launch in is a testament to their trust and support to help finance this growth which has helped make our vision a reality,” Bezzina said.

A safer and reliable service

Blue Managing Partner Andrei Stancu said the transport market in Romania is ripe for change and Blue is poised to deliver a safe, reliable, and affordable solution.

“The ride-hailing market in Romania is typically characterised by low standards of service and old vehicles, fuelled by cheap prices. At Blue, we made the conscious decision to fill and own a gap in the market, offering a safer and reliable round the clock service, using world class tech powering modern, high quality owned and partner fleets” Stancu said.

“After a thorough vendor analysis exercise, we chose to power our brand with the eCabs Technologies platform, and we’ve had an excellent understanding with the eCabs Team from the get-go. We are very optimistic about the future of Blue and the excellent business relationship we have with eCabs Technologies” he added. 

The Romanian Market

Romania’s transportation market presents an exciting opportunity. With a population of over 20 million, and more than 11 million annual tourist arrivals. Whilst Blue has started its journey in the Romanian capital of Bucharest, the plan is for national growth.

And, with a significant portion of Romanian rides still waved down from the curb or booked over the phone, there is major potential for transformation and growth in the ride hailing market. 

Tailor-made tech

Built in one of the world’s densest road networks and most competitive ride-hailing environments, eCabs Technologies provides a unique model in the international white label ride-hailing business – one which combines 13 years of 24/7 intimate operational expertise and a powerful, multi-channel technology platform.

This allows businesses all over the world to use the platform together with eCabs invaluable industry expertise and experience, to successfully launch their brands in any jurisdiction.

In the press:

Times of Malta | Malta Today | Lovin Malta | Who’s Who

eCabs could be powering your next ride in Athens

eCabs could be powering your next ride in Athens

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eCabs Technologies is exporting its technology and industry know-how beyond Malta’s shores, teaming up with overseas partners to launch new ride-hailing platforms. Its first international partnership comes in the form of Taxi.gr, which will debut in Athens, Greece this September, with other jurisdictions also in the pipeline.

The Athens launch in partnership with Greek company Intelligent Mobility App SA, signifies eCabs’ leap onto the global stage, backed by considerable research and development efforts, and a strategic drive for innovation and growth beyond Malta.

In an exclusive interview with MaltaToday, eCabs founder and CEO Matthew Bezzina sat down with MaltaToday to talk about the technological changes in the transport industry and what it took to take the eCabs product and export it abroad. He tells Nicole Meilak how the ride-hailing company transformed its business and is now going international.

Empowering global aspirants

eCabs describes its new product as a white-label solution for business interests looking to enter the digital ride-hailing space.

Bezzina says they have created ride-hailing tech that can be tailored to the specific needs of a foreign country and city.

The app they built for Greece for instance, looks and feels like the eCabs app, but incorporates specific features that are unique to the Greek transport reality.

This includes a unique pricing system that is based on the metering model used in traditional taxi cabs across Greece.

Similarly, when platforms launch in other jurisdictions, they will have their own unique features to reflect the rules and realities of that specific country.    

But eCabs aren’t only bringing tech to the table. Bezzina says they also bring market expertise and operational know-how.

He said they are forming “comprehensive partnerships” with foreign operators, providing operational support, marketing assets, and industry acumen.

Their first partners are major taxi operators in the Greek capital.

Having been through the difficult transition from a traditional cab company to a digital ride-hailing platform, Bezzina says they know how to help other businesses make the same transition.

And they do it all from their headquarters in Malta.

“Within a 100m radius from our office, you have a ride-hailing laboratory, a research and development site right here in St Julians,” Bezzina said.

A digital evolution

Looking back on the eCabs journey over the years, Bezzina says the company was disruptive to the Maltese transport landscape. “eCabs made it easier for people to get involved in the industry”.

For instance, he said the company opened the doors for women to become drivers – something seldom seen prior to 2010.

Starting out as a three-person startup in 2010, eCabs has undergone a remarkable transformation of its own.

Back in its earliest days, Bezzina and his first employees took down reservations for rides using pen and paper.

Today eCabs employs over 400 professionals, developing cutting edge tech, and is asserting its presence in the global ride-hailing market – a bold step for a Maltese, homegrown outfit.

“From 2016 and 2017 onwards, we went into a journey of digital transformation. Ultimately you need to level up in terms of the tech offering in order to be able to compete, not only on a local level but eventually on a global level.”

What was once a fleet ownership model has morphed into a dynamic marketplace connecting drivers and riders.

Technology has played an important role in this, but Bezzina thinks that data will have an even bigger influence on the market in the years to come.

“The more time passes, the more our company will have to become a data company. The user experience will be influenced, both from a driver and consumer standpoint, based on the right optimisation and usage of data.”

Triumph amidst adversity

COVID-19 took a major toll on cab companies – eCabs was no exception. The company experienced a 90% decline in year-on-year ride volumes as Malta ground to a halt.

But Bezzina says COVID-19 was the opportunity for eCabs to accelerate its transformation into a technology company.

“Throughout COVID the technology team became a technology company that today employs over 60 people. This is a growing number, and this all happened between 2020 and 2023.”

Bezzina says this is a story of resilience on several levels.

“It’s a story of resilience, of vision, of the team. It’s easy to do this stuff when you’ve just received a billion in funding. But we’re frugal, we optimised, and we’re self-funded. We survived – and even thrived – against all odds.”

The company’s move to internal technology development, Bezzina highlighted, was a pivotal move that enabled eCabs’ survival.

“Between 2010 and 2016 we used to depend on third-party technology… From 2016 onwards we took a conscious decision and said listen, we have to start building the technology internally because we have the product and operational know-how.”

And that leap has paid off with the company now eyeing overseas markets to export its technology.

The next time you are on holiday in Athens, you could very well be using Maltese technology to hail your cab ride to the Acropolis.

In the press:

Malta Today

Taking eCabs International

We’re taking eCabs international

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eCabs Technologies CEO

Matthew Bezzina

We recently announced the first phase of our internationalisation process.

After years of perfecting our product at home, we’re leaving the sandbox and taking the eCabs Technologies ride hailing platform to a number of major cities in Europe and beyond. 

So, this is the story of how we’re teaming up with exciting new partners, and why.

A desire to change

Fourteen years ago, eCabs was born out of a single-minded obsession: there had to be a better way of getting from A to B. 

We knew the traditional taxi model needed to change.

I should know, back in 2010 when we first launched our 24/7 manned operation I was driving cabs myself. 

Having my hands on the wheel was essential for me – not just to keep a finger on the pulse of what was happening, but because I’ve always believed that if you’re going to change something you first have to know how it works. 

We knew that the days of waving down a cab from the curb were through.

And we were right.

Things were changing. Fast. 

The rise of smartphones and app stores coupled with a desire for more flexible work all conspired to accelerate the transport tech revolution.

So, we got to work and started creating our own in-house platform; driven, above all, to raise the bar of consumer convenience and driver optimisation.  

Building that tech was a painstaking process.

We were cutting against the grain – challenging long-standing industry orthodoxies.

But we followed through because we believed then, as we still do now, that the future of sustainable transport really is digital. 

Over the years, eCabs transitioned from a market leading round the clock dial-a-cab operation to a digital platform-based taxi and booking dispatch platform with multiple revenue streams built with purpose

To me that’s what has always set us apart from other ride-hailing and taxi platforms.

We are a tech company that also has years of real-world, hands-on industry expertise. Our Product Development team is built from that invaluable experience.

Today, our tech provides seamless mobility solutions for users as well as rewarding and flexible work for partner drivers.

Learning our lessons

The transition wasn’t easy.

Believe me.

Over a decade and a half, we’ve learned a lot about how the ride hailing sector works – and how it doesn’t. 

From navigating the day-to-day complexities of a nationwide transport operation on one of the world’s densest road networks to managing delicate stakeholder engagement and educating a complex and nuanced market – we’ve been there.

We’ve sifted through terabytes to find those golden needles buried in the endless data haystacks.

We’ve harnessed the power of machine learning and employed world class engineering talent to help us do it.  

We’ve sat down with reluctant drivers who were apprehensive of change.  

And with policymakers and regulators tasked with overseeing a rapidly changing sector that they may not have fully grasped. 

And we’ve done it all while successfully locking horns with cut-throat industry giants. 

So surely, we can use all this experience – this incredible journey that eCabs has been on – to help others make the same transition and embrace tech?

Yes, we can.

And we are.

Passing on what we’ve learnt

We’re applying what we’ve learned over these past 14 years to build new meaningful partnerships with operators across Europe and beyond. 

By teaming up with strategic players in markets where millions of rides are up for grabs every day, we’re taking eCabs’ tech out of the sandbox and into the rest of the world. 

What we have created is something really special: a turnkey white-label solution that provides tailored, city-specific mobility tech, coupled with our operational guidance and expert support and years of marketing and branding experience. 

We’re giving businesses the opportunity to launch their own brand and take that brave leap into the future of ride-hailing.  

At the same time, we wanted to ensure users in these new jurisdictions can count on the same standard of service we pride ourselves on providing back home in Malta. 

So, we aren’t just sharing a product, we’re sharing the risk. 

We are invested in our partners’ success and are committed to having skin in the game in these new jurisdictions.

These partnerships are going to change the face of mobility for millions of users.

Our mission has always been to make transport accessible, safe, and sustainable for everyone.

Now we’re taking the next step in that journey. 

Matthew is obsessed with the way people move from place to place. In 2010, frustrated by a tired and unreliable transport sector, he set up eCabs – motivated by a crisp vision on the future of mobility. From a three-man transport start-up, Matthew, together with his brother Andrew, drove eCabs to a group that employs 500 people, including a tech company that learns from and powers its local operation, and helps mobility companies in jurisdictions across Europe and beyond in their technology transformation. When he’s not thinking about tech, data and leadership, he’s normally reading about a wide variety of subjects or lighting the kindling for a flaming philosophical debate. Catch him running before sunrise and working past sunset.
eCabs Technologies ride-hailing platform lands in Greece

eCabs Technologies ride-hailing platform lands in Greece

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taxi.gr officially launches in September

eCabs Technologies is set to deploy its ride-hailing platform in Athens, Greece, as it begins taking its industry expertise and operational know-how to new jurisdictions. 

The taxi.gr ride-hailing app, developed at the eCabs headquarters in St Julian’s, Malta, and operated by Intelligent Mobility App S.A. based in Athens, Greece, provides a seamless online ride-hailing solution for riders as well as safe and flexible work for drivers, empowering individuals to move and work on their own terms.

It is the first territory where eCabs Technologies’ ride-hailing platform is being launched with other international jurisdictions also in the pipeline.

eCabs Technologies Founder and Chief Executive Officer Matthew Bezzina said the upcoming launch in Athens in September is the fruition of years of research and development and months of collaboration with its partners in Greece. 

The taxi.gr platform is set to be an important player in shaping the digital transformation of the ride-hailing landscape in Greece.

“We are really proud of what we have created and what the company has accomplished. Growing eCabs from a small three-man start-up in 2010 to a group of companies employing over 400 people and a technology company with industry-leading talent. Now we are excited for eCabs to be flying the Maltese flag in the international ride-hailing industry beyond Malta’s shores,” he said. 

On his part, Manos Koronakos, CEO of Intelligent Mobility App S.A. said, “This is a great opportunity and a perfect time for us to be launching our Taxi.gr ride-hailing platform, in a market that is ripe for digital growth. We are very excited to be working with eCabs Technologies with whom we have forged a great understanding and relationship”. 

Manos Koronakos, CEO of Intelligent Mobility App S.A. with Matthew Bezzina, CEO of eCabs Technologies.

Digitising an offline market

Athens’ transportation market presents an exciting opportunity. 

With a population of well over three million people, and more than six million annual tourist arrivals, the Greek capital has significant potential for growth. 

And, with a significant portion of Greek rides still waved down from the curb or booked over the phone, the ride-hailing options for users remain largely offline. 

Recognising the digital transformation sweeping through the industry globally, eCabs Technologies sought to create a dynamic online solution that caters to the needs of both riders and drivers alike.

“At eCabs Technologies we believe that by digitising the transport sector, we can unlock its potential.  This is what we have been driving towards everyday. Taking our tech to new, exciting jurisdictions like Athens is a big step towards achieving this goal,” Bezzina said. 

Tailor-made tech

The eCabs engineering team in Malta developed a turnkey, white-label tech solution.

This allows businesses all over the world to use the platform together with eCabs industry expertise and experience, to successfully launch their brands in any jurisdiction. 

The tech solution is also developed with bespoke country and city-specific features. 

The taxi.gr platform being launched in Greece for instance, features a new in-app pricing model based on the metering requirements set by Helenic transport regulators. 

eCabs Technologies ride-hailing platform lands in Greece

Bezzina said that all new tailor-made technology components that are developed in Malta for specific countries will further enrich the eCabs Technologies platform.

These features are designed to provide optimal support for international partners through efficient deployment of country-specific features that respect different jurisdictions’ needs and regulations.

Invaluable support

Bezzina said that the objective of taking eCabs Technologies to new heights would not have been possible without the support of the Malta Development Bank:

“The MDB has supported this project from the start, believing in our relentless mission to internationalise and take our locally built technology overseas. We are thankful for their trust and their support to help finance this growth which has helped make our vision a reality.”

To launch taxi.gr in Athens, eCabs Technologies has partnered with a major player in the Greek transportation industry and Bezzina said the eCabs team is excited to be working with them. 

Looking ahead, eCabs Technologies and its Greek partners have ambitious plans to extend the taxi.gr platform across mainland Greece and its islands, providing a convenient and reliable transportation solution to an even broader national audience.

As the partnership evolves, the focus will remain on enhancing the rider experience, providing economic opportunities for drivers, and contributing to the ongoing digital transformation of the transport sector.

eCabs Technologies meanwhile is also engaged in other internationalisation partnership projects and will be releasing further announcements in the coming months. 

“This is an exciting time for us – eCabs is moving from local to international, empowering ride hailing technology beyond its home shores, one partnership at a time,” Bezzina said.

 

A journey of personal growth and success

A journey of personal growth and success

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eCabs Technologies Product Owner

Stephanie Portanier Mifsud

Personal growth is very important to me. And I count myself fortunate that the field I work in is conducive to pushing boundaries and fueling creativity.

My fascination with people and their dynamics drives me to work towards finding solutions that can enhance the quality of experiences for both customers and businesses. This gives me a sense of purpose in my professional endeavours.

Outside of work, my most important role is being a mother to two young and lively boys. They keep me happily occupied in my free time, and I cherish every moment spent with them.

I have also actively pursued further education through various courses and engaged in diverse projects. These experiences have enriched my skillset and allowed me to contribute effectively to different challenges.

As far as my career trajectory goes, I had worked as a Business Analyst since 2016, three of those years in a Scrum environment at eCabs. The company then offered me the possibility to move on to a Product Owner role smoothly and naturally.

Nowadays, I am responsible for defining the vision for the product with our key stakeholders.

One thing that I like – and feel is essential in my role – is to understand and anticipate our users’ needs. So, I can evaluate and prioritise product features and goals.

I truly believe my commitment to understanding customer needs and feedback here at eCabs has allowed me to contribute to my professional and personal growth.

Learning as I go

Scrum allows the team to work in small iterations. This helps the product to be built in an incremental approach, as we adapt to changes to return maximum value. This enables us to handle multiple projects concurrently.

One of my main tasks is evaluating the product progress at each iteration, as well as planning for the next one, based on the priority assigned.

So as a Product Owner I do not need to know all requirements in advance. Instead, I must take decisions to prioritise any backlog.

My fascination with people and their dynamics drives me to work towards finding solutions that can enhance the quality of experiences for both customers and businesses.

eCabs Technologies Product Owner Stephanie Portanier Mifsud

Our teams are very lucky to have a leadership team that is very approachable, supportive, and willing to support us through their invaluable and rare industry experience. They provide us with the individual space for all team members to be able to learn and excel in our roles.

I learn as I go along through continuous collaboration with my team. In this way, I can make the decisions and priorities to continue developing the right product for the business and stakeholders.

Pride and satisfaction

As a technology company that benefits from the wealth of knowledge that has been garnered over 13 years of operational experience, we are eager to bring our expertise and powerful technology platform to investors and operators alike as we venture into new territories.

Our decision to explore new markets was driven by the rising demand for our services. As well as a strong belief in the huge potential of our software offering.

My team and I have had the benefit of being able to rapidly push and test new product features onto the hyper-competitive local market, and then take those learnings and wins to our foreign partners.

We are proud and eager to bring our expertise and innovative solutions to a wider audience and make a positive impact on their lives and businesses.

I feel my journey and commitment to understanding customer needs and feedback has allowed me to contribute substantially to eCabs’ products. I cannot wait to see operations in the new markets scale!

Do you have the skills required to join Stephanie in eCabs Technologies’ super Product team?

Check out our Careers page
Stephanie’s passion lies in understanding human behaviour and interactions, which led her to study Psychology. She began her career in business analysis in 2014, and since then, she has actively pursued further education through various courses and engaged in diverse projects. Stephanie is mum to two young and lively boys, whom she adores. When she does find some time for herself, she indulges in activities that invigorate her, such as spending time with good company, swimming, enjoying a leisurely walk, or engaging in a good workout session.
It takes experience to fix the user experience

It takes experience to fix the user experience

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eCabs Technologies Head of Product

Marvin Briffa

When it comes to learning the ropes, nothing really beats hands-on experience.

But what if you grab that experience and couple it with innovative tech, and a team of gifted engineers? That’s where the magic happens.

To me, that’s what sets eCabs apart from other ride-hailing and taxi platforms.

It’s a technology company that also has years of real-world, hands-on industry expertise.

That’s because, over the years, eCabs has transitioned from a traditional dial-a-cab operation to a digital platform-based taxi and booking dispatch platform with multiple revenue streams.

eCabs embraced the power of emerging technology and built on more than a decade of real-life experience.

“You just can’t fake that kind of experience”

Thirteen years ago, when I was in my early 20s, one of my first part-time jobs was driving cabs – with eCabs.

And I cut my teeth working at our first operations centre smack in the middle of St Julian’s, Malta’s busiest urban centre.

Picking up customers, dropping them off, taking booking reservations, and working around traffic flows and people’s lifestyles.

It taught me a lot about the realities of this industry.

I learnt what it means to get stuck in traffic because you aren’t sure about the best route.

Or how peak passenger numbers change depending on a whole range of factors – like is it the middle of summer? Are you on the West or East coast? Is the area you’re driving through urban or suburban?

This was at a time when mobile data was prohibitively expensive and mapping apps were practically inexistent.

And I’m not alone.

Key members of the eCabs and eCabs Technologies leadership teams were also there at the beginning of this journey.

You just can’t fake that kind of experience.

Because when it comes down to it, you need to know how something works if you’re going to have any chance of fixing it.

Our job is to continuously refine our tech offering, making our product smarter, faster, and more user-friendly for all our users – whether that’s riders, drivers, and now also our city partners.

eCabs Technologies Head of Product Marvin Briffa

As an aside, eCabs is also the kind of company that believes in personal growth.

Over the years I furthered my education, studying business administration at prestigious European universities – this was possible in no small part to the support and encouragement I received from eCabs.

Going global

Today, as Head of Product, I work with a team of business analysts, product owners, product managers, UI UX designers, talented engineers and gifted data crunchers.

Our job is to continuously refine our tech offering, making our product smarter, faster, and more user-friendly for all our users – whether that’s riders, drivers, and now also our city partners.

And when we’re not fine-tuning our existing offering, we’re creating new products to enrich our suite too.

We’re doing all this because 2023 is shaping up to be a big year for eCabs.

Taking our tech solutions and industry know-how to new jurisdictions is the next step in this journey.

At eCabs, we know how to help traditional taxi operations transition and embrace the solutions that tech offers the mobility sector.

We know this because we’ve already done it.

We know the teething problems and growing pains – like the resistance to embrace new technology or the fear that that tech is out to get them.

We’ve been there.

We’ve also learnt what it’s like to re-educate a market. One that’s used to thinking of mobility and transport in set ways.

But those ways are increasingly less compatible with contemporary lifestyles.

And another thing: This isn’t one-size-fits-all.

Each city has its own requirements – its own particular reality.

That’s why our team includes product owners and development teams from diverse backgrounds and cultures that are dedicated to creating new city-specific features.

We’re taking our tech global, and we’re pumped!

Marvin is an experienced Head of Product with a background in the mobility industry, previously having served as a Business Analyst and Product Owner within eCabs. In his current role, he oversees the expansion of the company’s ride-hailing technology across multiple European cities, providing resources to help taxi associations and ride-hailing operators expand their businesses. Marvin holds an MBA from the University of Suffolk, UK, as he prepares to read for his doctorate. He is a husband and father, who enjoys a good intense workout and spends much of his free time reading and researching about management and the mobility industry.
eCabs internationalisation

eCabs primed for internationalisation by June 2023

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eCabs, Malta’s very own and only flag bearing ride-hailing platform powered by its proprietary technology and innovation powerhouse Cuorium Technologies, expects to reach its first landmark milestone in its internationalisation efforts by June 2023.

With consistent investment in technology talent and an unwavering resolve to expand in major EU cities, eCabs is now yielding the goals that could elevate Malta’s corporate and technology credentials on an international scale.

Business Today sat down with Matthew Bezzina, Chief Executive Officer at Cuorium Technologies and Luca Di Michele, Chief Technology Officer, to grasp an insight into one of the most exciting commercial ventures growing in Malta, charting the path for the eCabs flag to be sported in European cities.

Recently, eCabs has undergone a significant restructuring of its operations. Luca was promoted to Chief Technology Officer at eCabs. Matthew moved on to become the CEO of Cuorium Technologies while Andrew Bezzina was named the CEO of eCabs.

How did this major transformation come about?

Luca Di Michele: In 2019 I spearheaded the establishment of our proprietary ride hailing technology. Three years have flown by like a flash. It is extremely satisfying to look back and see how much ground we have covered and the growth we have achieved, moving us far ahead enough to make this quantum leap into the international market. During this period, we have gone through exciting phases of renewal and transformation, building a highly competent, enthusiastic team of dedicated professionals who are driven by an incredible passion and the ambition for creating ahead-of-the-curve mobility technologies and solutions.

Matthew Bezzina: Our joint efforts have resulted into impressive growth, despite the international economic climate and the upheaval caused by the pandemic. Faced with these challenges we had some fundamental choices to make. We could have either retrenched and focused on keeping on winning the local market battles or aspire to become an international brand in mobility technology and provision of ride-hailing services. We could have decided to do like many others and just invest in property or take the plunge and the risk that comes with a significant shareholder investment of €7 million. Today, we are reaping the first dividends of these decisions, wherein despite all the headwind we faced we now have a platform created in Malta that is ready to go beyond our borders and proudly fly our national flag in this growing tech driven industry.

How does this restructuring effort feature in the growth path of the Company and its platform?

MB: Our organisation’s transformation journey started kicked off in 2017 and has been through multiple iterations. However it was towards the end of 2019 that we really changed gears and growth accelerated in a flywheel effect as soon as the pandemic hit the globe. The pandemic had the effect of a giant pause button on the industry which gave us the space to shape our platform, build a multicultural team, spin-off a technology company with one of the largest cadre of developers on the island and start charting the path towards our international aspirations. The bottom line was that of thinking out of the box, keep eyes on the ball and act with agility.

LDM: My development team has grown from an in-house cosy group of four people to a more than 50-strong talented team serving as the foundation, engine and R&D for our own technology platform. What each one of us at eCabs Technologies learns is that working here brings a massive advantage for technologists to test their skills against the world’s best, whilst learning, developing themselves, and growing into leadership positions as the company matures.

“A huge competitive advantage”

MB: An essential part of this success has also been the huge competitive advantage of having everything we need from an operational perspective within a 100-meter radius. Our headquarters practically resemble a giant laboratory with the ability to have on-field testing and instant feedback of results. We have also been blessed with the immeasurable benefit of direction from over a decade of operational knowledge and experience which facilitates development and improvements at speed, whilst competing with the world’s largest and most-funded players. Competing with the ilk of Bolt and now Uber has been a blessing with both companies backed by billions of Euros in funding, respectively. We’re playing in the champions’ league, which forces us to be the absolute best we can be and always aspire to be better and measure up against these technology giants.

What are the tangible results of your organisation’s development approach?

LDM: Our investments in Cuorium Technologies and eCabs have made us a considerable technology and software development business dedicated to mobility. We can stand out in the local market based on such a solid foundation.

MB: For the last two years we have been very busy reinventing our platform with our own IP and closing the gaps we needed to realise our ultimate vision. We brought the pre-pandemic consumer app experience up to the highest degree with multiple improvements in terms of usability, automation, system robustness and features, enabling our platform to be more competitive.

LDM: We also built the entire partner driver model from scratch and the extensive technology that is behind it. All these technologies are in a constant state of evolution and improvement. In this respect we have started our journey to take our technology to its next evolutionary chapter in machine learning, a project that allows our teams to leverage a multitude of our data points in the Google Cloud Learning Platform. This evolution gives us real-time, machine-enabled analysis and actions to scale quickly through big data driven decisions, as we integrate our proprietary technology with Google’s platform. The technology is in a constant state of evolution which will keep maturing and requiring best of breed talent who are eager to challenge themselves.

What are the challenges that you expect to face in the international markets?

MB: We are in a quickly evolving market of fierce competition fuelled by an ever-increasing demand for various mobility solutions as city-dwellers are more likely to leave their own cars behind, seeking alternatives to public transport for shorter and faster urban journeys.

LDM: When we made a tough decision to rebuild all our technology assets to establish our own intellectual property platform, we managed to create proprietary technology, supporting our great achievements in Malta as a unique multi-booking platform. Whilst the app market is set to grow from a current 40% to 46% by 2025 in the EU, the market is still dominated by traditional ride hailing booking means, and our platform uniquely offers the best of both worlds. We expect to leverage the capabilities and power of our one-of-a-kind platform and transpose it in other jurisdictions.

MB: We are also cognizant of the challenge that international markets hold for us, despite being firm believers in our platform, technology, and people. Global market penetration is always difficult for Maltese companies as our local market is small and isolated. Yet, we see our success in the local market, which is saturated by mobility solutions from international tech giants, as a testament to our international competitiveness on equal footing. We know that our IP is driving us to differentiate ourselves in international markets with positive feedback from foreign investors, whose due diligence has identified the eCabs platform as unique and at par with the best-in-class.

What can support you in being successful internationally?

LDM: As we are growing into one of the largest software firms in Malta exclusively dedicated to the development of our mobility innovations and technology solutions, we also keep onboarding further highly skilled professional talent to support the expansion of our expertise in, but not limited to, machine learning, data science, cloud-computing, cloud-based architecture, edge-environment management, internet of things application integration and mapping services.

MB: Our ambitious journey off the shores of Malta will be supported by our dedicated multicultural teams. They are committed to developing flagship technology and innovative solutions, making it available across cities globally as we expand. Of course, the perennial challenge to raise finance for technology products remains an uphill struggle which however we are confident will be overcome with the priceless support of the financing institutions. 2023 will make the start of this new chapter a reality for the Company, our employees and our country.

In the press:

Business Today

Cuorium Technologies Matthew Bezzina

eCabs’ tech arm Cuorium Technologies eyes international expansion

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Former eCabs Chief Executive Officer Matthew Bezzina recently took over the leadership role at Cuorium Technologies.

Malta’s ride-hailing company eCabs has shown impressive growth lately and, propelled by this success, its founders are looking to expand into new international markets. Most still think of eCabs as a transportation operator but in reality, at its core, we discover that behind the popular brand we see daily on our streets there is a technology and innovation powerhouse called Cuorium Technologies.

This business is poised to take its products into the mainstream of one of the most competitive and fast-paced sectors in the world: mobility. To chart this path, the company recently announced that former eCabs Chief Executive Officer Matthew Bezzina has now taken the leadership role at Cuorium Technologies – with a very clear vision of where this will take their business and the Maltese tech scene.

The Malta Business Weekly sat down with Bezzina to talk about the growth potential of Cuorium Technologies, what the challenges and opportunities are, and how the future of mobility is shaping up.

How would you describe the eCabs journey so far?

When we started the business over a decade ago, at the centre of our most rudimentary thoughts was how we could harness the emerging technologies to overhaul an archaic sector which thrived on the typical closed-shop culture that stifles innovation, competition and improved service delivery. Many – up to this very day – think of us as a transportation company but in effect we are an innovation-driven business which was capable of adapting technology to bring about a transformation in the mobility sector in Malta.

This has been a fascinating journey for us, particularly when you consider the uphill struggle any tech start-up faces in this country and this is why I look back with a sense of satisfaction and pride witnessing the way the business has grown over the years despite many challenges.

The major game-changer in our trajectory came about when we took a very tough decision and opted to re-build all our technology assets internally in order for us to own the intellectual property of all our platform, which would enable us to leverage what we achieved in Malta and transpose it in other jurisdictions.

Cuorium Technologies

After a huge investment and many man years of effort by all our fantastic tech team at Cuorium, we are now thrilled to see Cuorium Technologies embark on this exciting, new journey as we head for the internationalisation of our e-hailing platform.

What awaits you in the global mobility markets?  

We have no delusions of grandeur. We are grounded in reality. And whilst being firm believers in our product we are cognisant of the daunting challenge ahead of us. Our market intel clearly points at at a rapidly evolving market in practically all the continents, with ever-changing mobility trends and needs dramatically changing the world over.

Whilst international market penetration is always a tough proposition for a Maltese company we are striving to differentiate ourselves by leveraging our own IP and provide an e-hailing platform that delivers convenience, trust, and speed to both the driver and the passenger at the most affordable rates internationally. Our success in Malta is a living testament that our platform not only works but can also compete on equal footing with the mobility tech giants, something that makes us extremely proud of what we achieved and the space we’re in at the moment.

What are your expectations of the global mobility market?

As mobility is evolving, people are increasingly more likely to abandon their cars for running short-distance, urban errands. In this context, we expect the demand for services such as our platform to increase significantly across all demographics.

Forecasts see the European ride-hailing market reaching a value of over €51 billion in 2025. More than 160 million European residents will have used ride-hailing mobile applications by then. According to a Deloitte study in 2020, customers increasingly favour ride-hailing apps over traditional taxi services. It is important to note, that while the figure of 160 million passengers may seem high, it is only 20% of the entire population of the European Union. So, yes there is definitely potential for further market growth and expansion.

Today a small number of giant operators with rigid and complex model have captured the global market. These models are not nimble and flexible enough to enable existing fleet operators to participate in the e-hailing market through a seamless transitionary process, without making any capital outlay. Our model is squarely based on achieving a strong dose of fairness for:

  • the passenger (offering convenience, exceptional functionality and highly affordable rides).
  • the operator (delivering a fair return for the local champion of the service).
  • and most importantly the driver (ensuring he/she gets the lion’s share of the revenue generated).

What is your take on the Maltese start-up scene?

As much as I would love to say that there is a start-up ecosystem, I have to be frank and say that it does not really exist. We learned this the hard way. Incentives are negligible and procedurally cumbersome. Funding at the beginning of the project was non-existent, and as young entrepreneurs we never really managed to break the glass ceiling of the ‘established business community’.

Having said that we have recently witnessed a sea-change in attitude with the advent of the Malta Development Bank which is moving in the right direction to support viable and bankable businesses with the potential and commitment to make their venture happen. Hopefully other institutions follow in their footsteps so that we gradually start to create the much needed start-up ecosystem in Malta.

What are your strategic plans for supporting your internationalisation?

We have massive developments in the pipeline, which in turn will create further demand for the growth of our in-house technology team. By the end of the year we estimate to be one of the largest software firms in Malta fully dedicated to the development of our mobility technology assets. We will be onboarding more talent on our team as we increase our expertise in areas such as (but not limited to) machine learning, data science, cloud-computing and cloud-based architecture, edge-environment management, IoT application integration and mapping services.

I am also a firm believer that the success of our company’s internationalisation lies in the dedication and strong sense of belonging of our multi-cultural team. Apart from being an exceptional experience for all of us, the multi-culturalism of our team will be also commercially essential as we venture into foreign markets of diverse cultures. Our team, our leaders, my fellow founders and I are now on the starting blocks of a global race to penetrate as much markets as possible through our scalable platform. As we embark on this journey, we remain committed to fly our technology and innovation flag as high as we can across all the cities we shall be penetrating. The real journey starts now.

In the press:

The Malta Business Weekly 

eCabs restructuring

eCabs announce restructuring & appointment of new CEO for Malta operation

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Matthew Bezzina to lead the internationalisation of the Company after restructuring.

Leading ride-hailing and technology company eCabs has appointed the leadership team that will be executing its growth programme both locally and internationally as the Company is preparing itself to establish operations in international markets in the next 12-24 months.

As CEO for Cuorium Technologies, eCabs Technology arm, and the leader for global operations, Matthew Bezzina will be spearheading the internationalisation efforts for eCabs technology platform. Co-founder Andrew Bezzina replaces him as CEO for the local ride-hailing operations, in a period that is registering record performance and an ever-growing team of partner drivers.

In his forecast for 2022 and beyond for the local brand, Andrew Bezzina explained how despite all the challenges, 2022 is seeing eCabs registering double-digit growth on its best performance, a clear result of the company’s investments across all its business units.

“Our technology platform is continuously growing and improving with over 1,400 partners driving on our platform locally, a number that has exponentially grown over the last 12 months and which keeps growing. Local triple-digit year-on-year growth remains an ambition we are relentlessly working towards in the forthcoming years,” he added.

Restructuring and investment in its tech platform

The last two years have also seen eCabs accelerating its investment in its technology platform, as it positions itself to launch its technology in the exciting and growing international ride-hailing industry. The pipeline of investors and potential partners in the company’s target territories for its first wave of global growth is extremely encouraging.

“Forecasts state that the European ride-hailing market is to enjoy an annual growth rate of 12.5 percent. This is worth an estimated €45 billion in 2022. By 2025, Europe forecasts a mobility market of 160 million people, which is just 20% of its total population and still predominantly using offline channels – figures that show a global industry that is still in its infancy, with substantial growth opportunities,” Matthew Bezzina said.

Whilst eCabs’ principal interest remains that of launching the brand in different territories, the company also offers white-labelled software solutions to brands in any territory. “The leadership team we have put in place is already reaping its benefits. We are better positioned to keep growing our business. Thereby making make a national success out of our home-grown efforts in the digital space” Matthew concluded.

In the press:
Malta Today | Times of Malta | Who’s Who