Uber sells Southeast Asia business to Singapore-based Grab
After bowing out of China, Uber further shrinks its footprint in Asia with the sale of its Southeast Asia operations to Grab.
Ride-hailing firm Uber Technologies Inc has agreed to sell its Southeast Asian business to bigger regional rival Grab, sources with knowledge of the matter said on Sunday, in what would be the U.S. company’s second retreat from Asia.
The deal, which could be announced as early as Monday, marks the industry’s first big consolidation in Southeast Asia, home to about 640 million people, and puts pressure on rivals such as Indonesia’s Go-Jek, backed by Alphabet Inc’s Google and China’s Tencent Holdings Ltd.
As part of the transaction, Uber would get a stake of as much as 30 percent in the combined business, said a source with direct knowledge of the matter who did not want to be identified as the deal is not yet public.
Another source familiar with the deal said Uber would acquire a 25 percent to 30 percent stake in Grab, valuing the entire business at $6 billion, the same valuation it commanded in its most recent capital raising.
Uber and Singapore-based Grab, Southeast Asia’s biggest ride-hailing firm, declined to comment.
Expectations of consolidation in Asia’s fiercely competitive ride-hailing industry were stoked earlier this year when Japan’s SoftBank Group Corp made a multi-billion dollar investment in Uber.
SoftBank is also one of the main investors in several of Uber’s rivals, including Grab, China’s Didi Chuxing, and India’s Ola.
