Grab says it is unaware of any breach of M'sian laws, in latest probe on Uber takeover

KUALA LUMPUR — Grab Holdings Inc said it is unaware of any breach of Malaysian competition laws since its acquisition of rival Uber Technologies Inc’s Southeast Asian operations in March last year.

The ride-hailing provider, in a statement, said it acquired Uber’s Asean unit in good faith, and to provide more benefits to the public.

A Grab spokesman said the company has cooperated with the Malaysia Competition Commission’s (MyCC) request for information.

“Grab plays a complementary role in the entire public transport ecosystem in Malaysia, most often serving the first- and last-mile needs of public transport users.

“Today, commuters continue to have the choice of getting from one point to another using public transport, taxis or more than 30 other licensed e-hailing apps.

“To date, we have fully cooperated with MyCC in their request for information, and have not been made aware of any breach of competition laws since the acquisition in March 2018.”

The Singapore-based firm was responding to reports that it is the subject of an anti-monopoly probe.

It was reported that MyCC chief executive Iskandar Ismail last week said the agency was stepping up its investigation into Grab.

Uber sold its South-east Asian business to bigger regional rival Grab in March 2018 in exchange for a 27.5 per cent stake in the Singapore-based firm. But the deal invited regulatory scrutiny.

In September 2018, Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore deemed that the deal was "anti-competitive" and fined Grab S$6.42 million and Uber S$6.58 million.

The following month, the Philippines' competition watchdog also fined the two firms a cumulative 16 million pesos (S$420,000), saying they consummated their merger too soon and that the quality of service had suffered. THE MALAYSIAN INSIGHT