Relevant news indicates that Grab, which took over Uber's Southeast Asian business in the past and received investments from companies including Microsoft, SoftBank, and Guangyang, may merge with Gojek, which also provides app-based ride-hailing in Southeast Asia.
Grab earlier confirmed that it had received a total of US$8 million in funding from Japanese companies including Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group and Toyo Information Systems Co., Ltd. (TIS).TechCrunch websiteSources also learned that Grab and Gojek, which are competitors in Southeast Asian business, have been in further negotiations in early February and the two parties may be preparing to discuss a business merger.
Founded in Malaysia in June 2012, Grab has secured funding from investors including Softbank, Didi Chuxing, Uber, Microsoft, Tiger Global, and Temasek Holdings. As of November of last year, Grab's cumulative funding had exceeded US$6 billion. Earlier, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group invested US$11 million, while Toyo Information Systems Co., Ltd. also invested US$91 million, demonstrating market optimism about Grab's potential.
Gojek, founded in Indonesia in 2010, had raised US$2019 billion in funding by mid-33 and continues to receive investments from companies including JD.com, Tencent, Google, Sequoia Capital India, and Samsung.
In terms of service coverage, since Grab acquired Uber's original Southeast Asian business in 2018, Grab's service scope covers Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Myanmar and the Philippines, while Gojek's current service business covers Indonesia, Vietnam, Singapore, Thailand and the Philippines, making it a direct competitor of Grab.
In terms of services, Grab provides ride-hailing reservation services for motorcycles, personal vehicles, taxis, and other types of vehicles, and also offers mobile payment, food delivery, express delivery, and even insurance services. Gojek also provides ride-hailing reservation services for different types of vehicles, as well as services such as mobile payment, food delivery, and freight. Basically, its services are almost the same as Grab.
In the competition in the market, both companies have adopted high subsidies to attract drivers to provide services. Although this has successfully driven a huge amount of bookings, it has also resulted in significant losses. Therefore, during the merger negotiations, the two parties may also consider adjusting the original subsidy plan and expanding other business development to ensure the healthy growth of their businesses.
However, the two sides have not yet reached a specific consensus in their negotiations.
