Four friends want to change how South Africa’s e-hailing drivers make money

Four friends who run a property-maintenance business have created an e-hailing platform called Bro Cabs with the goal of changing the way South African drivers earn money. Their platform operates on a subscription model, charging drivers a fee to use the app while allowing them to keep 100% of their fares. The founders, including CEO Persy Qamata and COO Msizi Mtolo, saw an opportunity to address the high commissions taken by existing platforms like Uber and Bolt.

Bro Cabs was initially developed using funds from the friends' property-maintenance business, and they built a minimum viable product based on their own experience driving e-hailing trips in Johannesburg. The company has since expanded to 30,000+ registered drivers and is targeting students and other potential users through on-campus activations.

The founders argue that this subscription model could provide drivers with a fairer share of their earnings and compete with larger, established platforms.