🛵 Grab: The Uber Slayer
The Uber of Southeast Asia is captivating investors
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Grab (GRAB) is often called the Uber of Southeast Asia—for good reason.
The ‘Everyday Everything App’ not only forced Uber to exit the region but also turned its rival into a partner and investor.
The company ended 2024 on a high note, posting record revenue and user growth, reaching profitability, with rumors of a potentially game-changing acquisition of rival GoTo Group.
Grab recently received a surge of attention on X, with over 4,500 mentions on February 17—almost 10 times its usual number. This social media buzz coincided with heightened volatility, hinting that retail investor chatter may have amplified the stock’s swings.
After a 2021 SPAC deal brought the stock up to $17, Grab’s share price sank as low as $2.21 in 2022. Since then, GRAB has steadily recovered, climbing 50% since September 2024—right after we added it to our real-money stock portfolio, App Economy Portfolio.
Today, we’ll break down Grab’s origins, how it makes money, key takeaways from its Q4 FY24 earnings call, and the bull vs. bear case going forward.
Today at a glance:
The rise of Southeast Asia’s super app
Why the stock is in the spotlight
How Grab makes money
Insights from Q4 FY24 earnings call
The bull and bear case
1. The rise of Southeast Asia’s super app
A quick history
Founded in 2012 by Harvard Business School alumni Anthony Tan and Tan Hooi Ling, Grab began as a ride-hailing startup aiming to improve taxi services in Malaysia. Its tech-driven approach quickly gained traction across Southeast Asia, pitting Grab directly against Uber in one of the fastest-growing rideshare markets. By 2018, Uber decided it couldn’t compete with Grab’s local execution and deep regional insights, exiting the region in exchange for a $1.9 billion equity stake in Grab.
In other words, Uber effectively surrendered its Southeast Asian operations, validating Grab’s strategic strengths and local dominance. Uber’s Grab investment has grown to $2.5 billion at the end of 2024.
Today, Grab’s cap table includes:
Uber: 14%.
SoftBank: 10%.
Toyota Motor: 6%.
MUFG Securities: 4%.
The super app expansion
Following its success in ride-hailing, Grab set out to be the one-stop shop for the region’s daily needs. Today, users can order food, hail a car or motorcycle, deliver groceries, pay bills via GrabPay, and even access lending, insurance, and investment products—all within a single ‘super app.’
🚖 Mobility: Ride-hailing, rentals, and carpooling across 8 Southeast Asian countries.
🛵 Deliveries: Food (GrabFood), groceries (GrabMart), and parcel courier (GrabExpress).
💳 Financial Services: GrabPay wallet, lending, insurance, and investments.
📱 Other Services: Hotel bookings, movie tickets, telemedicine, and more.
With a young, mobile-first population in countries like Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, and Vietnam, Grab’s presence across multiple verticals provides a substantial competitive advantage. It also generates robust data on consumer spending habits, fueling targeted marketing and new revenue streams.
Grab has an estimated 70% share of the mobility market and 55% share of the food delivery market in Southeast Asia. In a winner-takes-most market—like Uber’s in the rest of the world—being number one is invaluable. Grab has carved out its own stronghold and is using Uber’s playbook with some localized add-ons.
2. Why the stock is in the spotlight
Beyond surging as a trending topic on X, a cascade of events recently put Grab in the spotlight.