CarFirst, which claimed to be Pakistan’s most trusted used car trading platform and the last such platform, has closed its operations in Pakistan, according to a Facebook post by the company. The announcement comes just weeks after competitor VavaCars made a similar announcement.
The company thanked its team and customers for their support in a statement released to the public on Friday. However, a team will be retained to handle the entity’s closure and “respond to queries from partners and customers throughout the closing period.”
CarFirst was launched in Pakistan in 2016 and experienced rapid growth in the first six months. CarFirst joins the ranks of companies that have ceased operations in Pakistan, including Vava Cars and Airlift.
In terms of business model and market, Vava Cars were the most similar to CarFirst. It was a marketplace for buying and selling cars in Pakistan. It announced in June that it would cease operations in Pakistan after two years of operation.
The airlift was introduced in Pakistan in 2019, but due to high fuel costs, it will cease operations on July 12, 2022. Meanwhile, Swvl, a transportation operating service, shifted its business model in response to rising oil prices.
