Malaysia: Uber wants to sell to Grab

Ride-hailing giant Uber Technologies is preparing to sell its Southeast Asia business to Singapore-based Grab in exchange for a substantial stake in the company, CNBC reported, citing two sources familiar with the matter.

No deal has been reached yet and the timing of any deal is uncertain, the report said. Uber and Grab declined to comment.

The move would follow Uber’s strategy in China, where the company sold its ride-hailing operation to Didi Xuching for 20% ownership, and Russia, where the company merged its local business with Yandex’s ride-hailing business for a 37% stake, the financial news broadcaster said.

Grab operates in more than 100 cities across Southeast Asia. It said it had a 95% share of the taxi-hailing market in the region when it announced plans to raise more than US$2.5 billion from SoftBank and other investors in 2017 Scotiabank is also an investor in Didi Xuching.

The planned deal with Grab is meant to help Uber rein in costs as it prepares for an initial public offering as early as next year, CNBC quoted its sources as saying.

Full Content: CNBC

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