TUNIS: Tunisia has launched an investigation into alleged money laundering and tax fraud involving ride-hailing applications, the interior ministry said on Monday.
Authorities also said they were suspending the apps.
“The financial division of the National Guard has uncovered suspicions of money laundering and tax evasion among operators of private taxi ride-hailing apps,” the ministry said in a statement.
The statement did not name the apps, but a source familiar with the matter told AFP the main company under scrutiny was the Estonia-based Bolt.
The ride-hailing app, operating in more than 500 cities from over 45 countries, is widely used in Tunisia, where public transportation infrastructure is inadequate.
Tunisian authorities said they have seized about 12 million dinars ($3.8 million) from accounts linked to multiple ride-hailing apps.
They said the companies had been removed from the commercial registry and their offices shut for allegedly operating without proper licenses and using fraudulent authorizations.
They were also accused of using bank accounts to illegally funnel funds abroad.
Tunisians have increasingly relied on ride-hailing services amid a deteriorating public transportation system.
Even the capital Tunis, home to over two million people, has suffered from years of public transit underinvestment and neglect.
President Kais Saied has repeatedly denounced corruption within the public transportation sector.