SINGAPORE: The Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (CCCS) has lifted the measures it imposed on Grab in September 2018 over its merger with Uber.
This comes after Singapore’s new point-to-point (P2P) transport regulatory framework came into effect on Oct 30, the watchdog said in a media release on Friday (Nov 20).
Parliament passed the P2P Passenger Transport Industry Bill in August last year, which requires all ride-hail and street-hail service providers with a fleet size of more than 800 vehicles to be licensed.
READ: Private-hire car operators to be licensed from next year as Parliament passes new regulatory framework
Amid the COVID-19 outbreak, implementation of the regulatory framework was delayed from June to October this year to allow operators more time to prepare their applications.
Since the launch of the framework, companies such as Tada Mobility, Gojek, Grab, ComfortDelgro and Ryde have been awarded ride-hail service operator licences, CCCS said.
Other existing taxi operators have also been issued limited ride-hail service operator licences to provide call booking services.
“As a result, there are a number of operators in the P2P sector today. The P2P regulatory framework administered by the Land Transport Authority and the Public Transport Council ensures that all licensed operators cannot prevent their drivers from driving for other operators,” CCCS said.
“The regulatory framework also ensures that P2P fares are transparent and clearly communicated to commuters, while leaving fare levels to be determined by market forces.
“With a sectoral regulatory framework now in place, CCCS considers it timely to release the directions imposed on Grab as the issues identified are more appropriately considered and addressed within the context of the sectoral regulatory framework,” the commission said.
READ: Singapore competition watchdog fines Grab, Uber S$13 million in total over merger deal
CCCS issued an infringement decision against Grab and Uber in September 2018, in relation to the March sale of Uber’s Southeast Asian business to Grab for a 27.5 per cent stake in the Singapore-based firm.
The deal led to a “substantial lessening of competition” in the ride-hailing market, CCCS said then, highlighting Grab’s increased prices and changes to its loyalty programme after the merger.
It issued directions to both firms to address these concerns, under which Grab must maintain its pre-merger pricing, pricing policies and product options, and remove all exclusivity obligations on drivers and taxi fleets.
These sought to lessen the impact of the deal on drivers and riders, and keep the market open and contestable, CCCS said.
Uber and Grab were together also fined a total of S$13 million over their merger. CCCS said the penalties were imposed to “deter completed, irreversible mergers that harm competition”.
On Friday, CCCS noted that Grab submitted an application in July to impose a S$0.30 platform fee for ride-hailing services.
The commission said it would no longer issue a decision on the application, after the lifting of the directions imposed on Grab.
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