The ride-hailing giant Careem is now in the delivery business as the company seeks new verticals in its ever-increasing fight against other services in the Middle East, including Uber. Starting with food delivery in Dhabi and Jeddah, the company sees the delivery service expanding to pharmaceuticals. according to a report by Reuters. Careem is investing more than $150 million into the service.

“We believe the opportunity for deliveries in the region is even bigger than ride-hailing,” chief executive and co-founder Mudassir Sheikha told Reuters. “It is going to become a very significant part of Careem over time.”

Called Careem Now, the service will operate independently from its ride-hailing business. It will have its own app and Careem is building the service a dedicated call center.

This comes as the company is trying to close a $500 million funding round. Back in October, the company announced it had already raised $200 million from existing investors. Prior to this announcement, rumors were swirling around the company that several companies, including Didi Chuxing, could acquire the company.

Source: New feed