After a few months of buzz and rumors, Uber on Monday announced that it will consolidate its Southeast Asia operations with rival Grab. It presently operates in the Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia, Cambodia, Indonesia, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam.
In the deal, Singapore-based Grab is set to take over Uber’s entire business in the region, including the Philippines. Uber will in turn get a 27.5% stake in Grab worth about $1.6 billion, which means it’s not a complete retreat at all for the company. This also includes Uber’s food-delivery business, UberEats, which was supposed to launch in Manila soon.
Uber’s rider and driver apps will still work for two more weeks until April 9. However, users will need to transition to Grab afterwards, which will then be the lone major transport network company to exist in the country. According to data from local regulators, Grab and Uber had around 50,000 vehicle units combined.