Brief: Singapore’s SMRT negotiating to sell taxi operations to Grab

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• Singapore transport operator SMRT wants to sell off its taxi business, and has been in talks with transport app company Grab for a deal. The move is due to SMRT’s desire to double down on its rail business to improve reliability.
• Both parties are struggling to agree on the terms, however. While SMRT wants all its taxi staff to retain jobs, Grab is not keen to take on more manpower. Grab declined to comment.
• SMRT owns a fleet of 3,400 taxis. It previously partnered with Grab to implement surge pricing on its taxis. Both companies also collaborated on a private car hire service.
• SMRT is fully owned by the government’s Temasek Holdings, while Grab received investments from Vertex Ventures, a venture capital firm affiliated to Temasek.

Source: The Straits Times