Bolt arrives at San Fermín and exposes Spain's taxi crisis
Taxi licences that once cost 4 pesetas now trade at 300,000 euros, and a ride that costs 15 euros in Korea runs 60 here. Disruptive Bolt has unleashed a perfect storm at San Fermín in Spain.
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
Taxi vs Bolt at San Fermín: the oligopoly that refuses to die
How much is a monopoly worth? In the Spanish taxi business, the answer is hundreds of thousands of euros for a licence that cost four pesetas back in the 1980s. With Bolt's arrival at San Fermín, the model has blown up. Taxi drivers are protesting, but the numbers are not on their side.
The underlying problem is structural. The taxi licence has gone from being a nearly free formality to trading at up to 300,000 euros on the secondary market. It is a hereditary privilege that exists in no other profession: nobody inherits a doctor's position. But in the taxi trade, it is bought and sold. And the customer pays the bill: a ride to the airport that costs 15 euros in Seoul costs 50 or 60 in Spain. With that gap, it is no surprise that San Fermín tourists open Bolt.
Behind Bolt there is no simple 'tech fix'. The company was founded in Estonia and its shareholders include Sequoia Capital and Mercedes-Benz, giants of the financialized economy. Against them, the taxi trade wields its licence like a shield. But the market knows nothing of privileges: it knows price and service. And on that scorecard, taxis have been losing for decades.
Some blame vulture funds for 'driving out the native species'. Others point to the sector's historical bad practices: invoices that never appear, change that never comes back, sightseeing rides at gold prices. Either way, the perfect storm has broken out at San Fermín, and taxi drivers are weeping. But the market, like the bull run, shows no mercy.
How much is a monopoly worth? In the Spanish taxi business, the answer is hundreds of thousands of euros for a licence that cost four pesetas back in the 1980s. With Bolt's arrival at San Fermín, the model has blown up. Taxi drivers are protesting, but the numbers are not on their side.
The underlying problem is structural. The taxi licence has gone from being a nearly free formality to trading at up to 300,000 euros on the secondary market. It is a hereditary privilege that exists in no other profession: nobody inherits a doctor's position. But in the taxi trade, it is bought and sold. And the customer pays the bill: a ride to the airport that costs 15 euros in Seoul costs 50 or 60 in Spain. With that gap, it is no surprise that San Fermín tourists open Bolt.
Behind Bolt there is no simple 'tech fix'. The company was founded in Estonia and its shareholders include Sequoia Capital and Mercedes-Benz, giants of the financialized economy. Against them, the taxi trade wields its licence like a shield. But the market knows nothing of privileges: it knows price and service. And on that scorecard, taxis have been losing for decades.
Some blame vulture funds for 'driving out the native species'. Others point to the sector's historical bad practices: invoices that never appear, change that never comes back, sightseeing rides at gold prices. Either way, the perfect storm has broken out at San Fermín, and taxi drivers are weeping. But the market, like the bull run, shows no mercy.
Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (15 replies).
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