Uber has agreed to sell its business in Southeast Asia to local rival Grab.
Grab is taking over Uber’s ride-hailing business in eight countries and Uber Eats, which is currently present in three. In exchange, Uber gets a 27.5 percent stake in Grab and Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi will join Grab’s board.
Southeast Asia is seen as a growth market thanks to a population of over 600 million people, many of whom are coming online for the first time, but it is also considered a loss-making market for new industries like ride-sharing — particularly when two companies are locked in a subsidies war.
This consolidation has been strongly rumored since SoftBank, an early investor in Grab, backed Uber via an investment in January.
