Markus Villig, CEO and co-founder of Taxify, said that the amendment to the Act on Transport Services adopted in Finland this summer opened the market to new transport opportunities and is an important step toward the future.

"The world is moving ever more in the direction where people abandon personal cars and more often use on demand transport," Mr Villig said in a press release.

Taxify first launched its services in Helsinki in 2014, when the service was also offered in the northern Finnish city of Oulu. However, it later had to pause its activities in Estonia's northern neighbour, but the adoption of a new transport law there enabled to re-enter the market.

Flexible income

"Taxify's objective is to offer fast and reliable city transport, and the arrival of Taxify on the Finnish market will no doubt have a positive impact on Helsinki's urban traffic," Ville Riola, operational director of Taxify Finland, said.

"In addition, Taxify offers people the option to earn an additional income flexibly, and there are undoubtedly many people in Finland who appreciate this opportunity, either as permanent work or an option to earn occasional additional income alongside their main job,'' she went on.

Taxify's base fee in Helsinki is €3, the price per kilometre is €1.10 and the price per minute €0.3, the company says, with a €6 minimum ride fee.

Founded in 2013, Taxify is an Estonian technology company which develops a global transport platform. The company boasts approximately 10 million customers in 25 countries and the platform is used by 500,000 drivers. In 2017 its revenue increased sixfold to €18 million, while losses totalled €11 million, it is reported.