Grab records impressive growth in Singapore after takeover row with local regulators

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Indonesian app Grab has released its Q2 financial results, scoring high points in Singapore despite regulators quashing its attempts to take over a local cab company.

The super app recorded a new quarterly high for active users, surpassing its previous metric by a country mile. Per the operating metrics, the company recorded group millions of users (MTUs) of 40.9 during the quarter, a 17% spike from Q2 of 2022, while its loan portfolio soared by 71%.

In terms of revenue, Grab outperformed its 2023 records by 17% but recorded an operating loss of $56 million. However, the company says the figures are an improvement year-on-year from its lows of $121 million. The figures also indicate cash liquidity at $5.6 billion, with the company repurchasing $40 million shares for a total of $131 million.

Grab‘s banking business recorded impressive upswings during the quarter, accentuated by an increase in deposits and a positive Adjusted Free Cash Flow. According to the statement, deposits in the segment soared by 50% from the last quarter, with subsidiaries in Malaysia and Singapore generating $730 million.

The company says it met its ESG targets in its food delivery segment, completing 99% of rides without any safety issues while recycling nearly 10,000 single-use plastics.

The report highlighted several reasons for the slew of positives, including an increase in average users and transaction volumes. Furthermore, several cost-reduction moves contributed to the positive figures in Q2 despite prevailing macroeconomic conditions.

“During the quarter, we achieved a new milestone, serving more users than ever at a record high of 41 million MTUs while delivering continued profitable growth at scale,” said Grab co-founder Anthony Tan. “Looking ahead, we are seeing continued strength in the Southeast Asian economy and will continue to leverage our key product initiatives to serve more users in the region.”

While the metrics appear wholly positive, Grab’s attempt to acquire Singapore ride-hailing platform Trans-Cab was shut down by regulators for violating antitrust rules. Not fazed by the rejection, the company says it is exploring new alternatives to improve the state of the supply chain in the city-state.

Singapore drives the largest metrics

An overview of the report reveals that Singapore is responsible for a chunk of the positives trailing Grab’s Q2 financials. Most of Grab’s users are residents in the city-state, driving adoption rates thanks to its young and tech-savvy population with high-speed internet and smartphones.

Singapore’s government has been pushing for a pivot to full digitization in payments, investing in Web3 and artificial intelligence (AI) initiatives to spur adoption. The hefty investment has since yielded early results, with Singapore emerging as the market leader for digitization in Southeast Asia.

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