# Bolt

> Estonian company in field of peer-to-peer ridesharing and food delivery

**Wikidata**: [Q20529164](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q20529164)  
**Wikipedia**: [English](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bolt_(company))  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/bolt

## Summary
Bolt is an Estonian mobility company that operates a global peer-to-peer ridesharing and food-delivery platform through its mobile app. Founded in 2013 and headquartered in Tallinn, it competes directly with Uber and other gig-economy giants across Europe, Africa and parts of Asia.

## Key Facts
- Founded on 3 August 2013 in Tallinn by Markus Villig; legal name Bolt Technology OÜ (Estonian registry code 12417834).
- Rebranded from “Taxify” to “Bolt” in 2019; still trades as Bolt.
- 2024 revenue: €1.99 billion; net loss: €103 million; 4 206 employees (2024).
- Operates in 45+ countries; main shareholder is Mordor Management (14.3 %, March 2026).
- Raised capital from Sequoia, D1 Capital, Mercedes-Benz Group, DiDi, European Investment Bank and others.
- Direct competitor to Uber in ridesharing and food-delivery markets.
- Mobile apps: iOS (App Store ID 675033633) and Android (Google Play dev ID 8420210619522248974).
- Social reach: 36 764 Twitter followers (Feb 2023); handles @boltapp on Twitter, @bolt on Instagram/TikTok.
- Member of OpenStreetMap Foundation (silver, since May 2022).
- EU Transparency Register ID 995377734447-25; EU VAT EE101721521.

## FAQs
### Q: What services does Bolt offer?
A: Through one app users can book private-car rides (ridesharing), order restaurant meals (Bolt Food), and in some cities rent e-scooters or e-bikes.

### Q: Is Bolt the same as Taxify?
A: Yes. The company began as Taxify in 2013 and rebranded to Bolt in 2019 to reflect its broader mobility mission beyond taxis.

### Q: How big is Bolt compared with Uber?
A: Uber remains larger globally, but Bolt is the leading rideshare platform in several European and African markets and competes head-to-head on price and driver commission.

### Q: Where is Bolt headquartered?
A: Bolt’s global headquarters is in Tallinn, Estonia; it has no secondary HQ listed.

## Why It Matters
Bolt is Europe’s largest home-grown challenger to Uber, proving that a small Estonian start-up can scale globally without Silicon-Valley roots. By keeping engineering in Tallinn and focusing on lower driver commissions and localised pricing, Bolt has expanded into 45+ countries and become the dominant ride-hailing option across Eastern Europe, the Baltics and parts of Africa. Its integrated “super-app” approach—combining rides, food delivery and micro-mobility—offers cities an alternative to U.S.-centric platforms, while its ongoing losses reflect the high cost of competing in thin-margin, regulation-heavy markets. For regulators, Bolt serves as a test case for European tech sovereignty and for how gig-economy rules affect growth.

## Notable For
- First Estonian start-up to reach €1 billion annual revenue (2023).
- Operates the largest ride-hailing network in Africa outside South Africa.
- Rebranded early from “Taxify” to avoid taxi-only perception, enabling scooter and food verticals.
- Maintains a single EU VAT number across all subsidiaries, simplifying cross-border compliance.
- Openly publishes real-time ownership data via Estonia’s public e-Business Register.

## Body
### Origins and Branding
Markus Villig founded Bolt (then mTakso) on 3 August 2013 while still in secondary school. The name changed to Taxify later in 2013 and finally to Bolt in 2019 to signal expansion beyond taxis.

### Corporate Structure
Bolt Technology OÜ is registered in Tallinn under code 12417834. It is a private limited company (OÜ) governed by Estonian law. Board member and founder Markus Villig retains strategic control; largest external shareholders are Mordor Management and D1 Master Holdco I.

### Financial Performance
Revenue grew from €1.70 billion in 2023 to €1.99 billion in 2024, yet the company remained loss-making with a 2024 net loss of €103 million. Total assets reached €781 million and equity €201 million at 31 Dec 2024.

### Product Portfolio
Core products are the Bolt ride-hailing app and Bolt Food delivery service. Both run on the same user account and payment wallet. In select cities Bolt also rents electric scooters and e-bikes.

### Competitive Landscape
Bolt competes primarily with Uber, but also faces local players such as Yandex.Taxi (in CIS), DiDi (in some markets) and Deliveroo or Wolt in food delivery. Its main competitive levers are lower commission rates for drivers and localised customer support.

### Regulatory Footprint
Bolt is listed in the EU Transparency Register and lobbies on platform-work and urban-mobility legislation. It holds EU VAT number EE101721521 and complies with GDPR through its Estonian data-protection registration.

## References

1. [Source](https://www.lobbyfacts.eu/datacard/bolt?rid=995377734447-25)
2. [Bolt Technology OÜ | e-Äriregister](https://ariregister.rik.ee/eng/company/12417834)
3. [Bolt Technology OÜ | e-Äriregister](https://ariregister.rik.ee/eng/company/12417834/Bolt-Technology-O%C3%9C)
4. [Source](https://wiki.osmfoundation.org/wiki/Special:Diff/9521)
5. [Compagnie Française d'Assurance pour le Commerce Extérieur. 2024](https://biz.coface.com/ceetop500_2024_lvee)
6. [annual report](https://ariregister.rik.ee/eng/company/12417834/Bolt-Technology-O%C3%9C)
7. e-Business Register
8. [Crunchbase](http://www.crunchbase.com/organization/mtakso)
9. Google Knowledge Graph