Go-Jek finally enters Singapore with beta app, DBS cardholders prioritized

After months of speculation and hint-dropping, Go-Jek has finally entered the Singapore market – the home turf of its archrival Grab. Today, it launched its private car ride-hailing service in beta, with the app available to download on iOS and Android from later this evening.

During the beta phase, users will only be able to be picked up and dropped off within a number of limited serviceable areas. These include the central business district in addition to Ang Mo Kio, Changi, Jurong East, Punggol, and Sentosa. The Indonesian company hopes to be serve the whole of Singapore by the end of the beta period, which is expected in early 2019.

Andre Soelistyo, president, Go-Jek (L); Raditya Wibowo, global head of transport, Go-Jek (CL); Shee Tse Koon, group head of strategy and planning, DBS (CR); and Gene Wong, head of ecosystems,
consumer banking group, DBS (R) / Photo credit: Go-Jek

Initially, Go-Jek rides will be available to a limited number of users, with new users added to the platform in staggered batches.

Cardholders with DBS – with which Go-Jek signed a partnership deal earlier this month – and sister bank POSB will be given priority. They can sign up in-app with a promo code – “DBS” followed by the first six digits of their American Express, Mastercard, or Visa DBS or POSB card – which will put them at the top end of the waiting list of riders. They’ll receive an email or push notification when Go-Jek registers them to use the beta service.

Once they’re signed up, registered DBS customers will get two vouchers entitling them to S$5 off their first two Go-Jek trips. They’ll also get future discounts “in the form of promo codes,” the company said.

Users that have already registered with Go-Jek in Indonesia won’t have to sign up again. Likewise, Indonesian Go-Jek users visiting Singapore will be able to use the app here without having to re-register.

Speaking at today’s launch event, Raditya Wibowo, Go-Jek’s global head of transport, said that the company won’t be operating dynamic pricing for the first few weeks of the beta phase. Instead, prices will initially be based on trip distance plus a base fare.

Go-Jek has already registered “tens of thousands” of drivers in Singapore, he added.

“[We’re providing] daily incentives rather than weekly incentives, so drivers can be flexible about when they want to drive,” he said. In collaboration with DBS, Go-Jek is also offering drivers the ability to instantly withdraw their earnings.

Shee Tse Koon, group head of strategy and planning at DBS, said that partnering with Go-Jek is a natural step for the banking giant “because ride-hailing is now a core, everyday need for our customers.”

He also hinted that the two companies will work more closely on payments going forward, leveraging DBS’ cardholder base, though no further details were given.

“We decided to work with DBS to piggyback on their infrastructure,” said Go-Jek president Andre Soelistyo. “It’s not just [about a] wallet, but the end-to-end experience of payment. When you decouple it, there are areas where we as the platform can contribute, and there are areas which DBS is really good at.”

See: Go-Jek’s first foreign adventure