Grab, PCC to meet re Uber acquisition

Ride-share app Grab is set to hold a meeting with the Philippine Competition Commission (PCC) to discuss the acquisition of Uber’s business in the country.

Grab Philippines public affairs head Leo Gonzales said in a press conference Wednesday the rideshare app has taken the initiative to reach out to the PCC and a meeting has been set for next week.

“We believe the PCC will conduct a review of the transaction that just happened, which is really their mandate. We are open to that. We don’t foresee any problem with that moving forward,” he said.

He declined to say, however, if Grab would file a notification with the PCC. He also refused to divulge the value of the transaction.

Grab announced on Monday it would take over Uber’s operations in the Philippines and other Southeast Asian countries including Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

With the acquisition, the Uber app would no longer be available and would move its services to the Grab platform by April 8.

PCC chairman Arsenio Balisacan said last March 26 no notification has been filed before the anti-trust body on the acquisition.

“If the parties meet the new threshold, now set at P2 billion for size of transaction and P5 billion for size of party, they should notify the PCC within 30 days after signing of their definitive agreement,” he said.

Grab Philippines country head Brian Cu said in the same event the ride-share app expects to get 20,000 to 24,000 partner drivers from Uber, following the transaction.