Tag: Grab

Manila, Philippines – As Grab in the Philippines doubles down on its efforts to pave the way for financial inclusion for all Filipinos, especially for its merchant-partners, the super app’s lending arm, Grab Financial Services Philippines, Inc., an SEC-licensed financing company, has launched its new loan service programme called Quick Cash.

With Quick Cash’s fast disbursal and easy application process, merchants can easily acquire a business loan that is tailored to their current needs, with no collateral required, and a flexible repayment term from 6 to 12 months. It is also able to personalise loans for each business to ensure they are able to afford their loan safely. Just as well, daily and automatic micro-deduction are also put in place by the program to help make repayments more convenient and hassle-free.

To avail loans, interested merchants will only have to confirm their merchant details with Grab with no additional requirements needed, and they are already all set to receive their needed capital and financial support – all in less than seven days.

Martha Borja, head for Grab Financial Philippines, shared that many of the budding MSME merchant-partners are in need of access to financial solutions – especially in the first few steps of their business which they have worked very hard to bring into fruition, and Grab is fully-committed to supporting them every step of the way. 

“Our new loan service programme will provide many of our MSME merchant-partners the very push that they need to scale their enterprise and grow their business on the Grab platform,” Borja said.

Manila, Philippines – Super app Grab in the Philippines has announced the launch of ‘Grab Caravan’, an on-ground celebration that invites all Filipinos to come together for their love of food by grabbing a bite from a selection of crowd favourite restaurants.

To kick off the Grab Caravan, Grab will first be visiting the home of picturesque sceneries of nature, Rizal province, to bring together and showcase the best of Rizal’s food scene at the Robinsons Place Antipolo Transport Terminal on 14 May. Some of the participating food establishments include Katsu House, Uncle Moe’s, Konbini by Katsu House, Auntie Anne’s, Big Al’s Cookie House, Baked By Mary Grace, Chachago, and Lecheng Tsaa.

“With the variety of restaurants joining together for the Grab Caravan, Rizaleños are in for a great feast, with lots of food choices available for everyone at any price point. Rizaleños should definitely be ready to satisfy both their cravings and their savings as they welcome the first-ever Grab Caravan in their hometown,” Grab said in a press statement.

GrabPay will also be the official payment partner of the Grab Caravan, which will allow attendees to get up to PHP20 cashback for every transaction made through GrabPay during the caravan.

After its stint in the Rizal province, the Grab Caravan will be visiting Cavite, Cebu, and Pampanga in the coming months.

Malaysia – Grab and Singtel has announced today that GXS Bank, their digital bank joint venture, and a consortium of Malaysian investors including Kuok Brothers, have been selected to receive a full digital banking licence in Malaysia, subject to meeting all of Bank Negara Malaysia’s regulatory conditions. 

The digital bank to be established is expected to enable local micro-SMEs and other financially underserved segments such as gig economy workers to access a suite of financial services. 

To build the Malaysia digital bank, Pei Si Lai, financial industry veteran and the one appointed to lead the digital bank, will be assembling a team with diverse backgrounds in finance and technology. Over 200 roles are targeted to be filled by launch, including in the areas of product and design, data, technology, risk, and compliance. 

Reuben Lai, senior managing director of Grab Financial Group and board member of the regional digibank JV, said that they will leverage the consortium’s combined strengths including technology expertise, data from highly-engaged consumers, experience in financial services in SEA, as well as deep understanding of the Malaysian market, to redefine the banking experience for underbanked Malaysians. 

 “The Malaysia digital bank consortium is honoured to be given the opportunity to build a next-generation digital bank and drive access to financial services for underbanked Malaysians,” said Lai. 

Meanwhile, Arthur Lang, Singtel’s group chief financial officer and also board member of the regional digibank JV, said, “We are glad to have this opportunity to support Malaysia’s vision of greater financial inclusion for its people. Our consortium partners and ourselves are excited to build a platform that will provide innovative digital banking services for the underbanked as well as the SMEs that are the backbone of the Malaysian economy. This aligns closely with our goal of harnessing technology to empower people across the region, bringing greater options and positive change as we build something special across the region. We aim to spur fintech innovation that will transform the banking experience, making financial services more accessible, relevant and affordable.” 

As CEO designate of the Malaysian digital bank, Lai brings extensive experience and deep customer centricity honed over 25 years in retail banking, wealth management, corporate finance, product and business management, as well as governance, in both local and international markets. Prior to her current role, she was managing director and country head for the consumer, private and business banking of Standard Chartered in Malaysia. 

Lai commented, “The opportunity to build the Malaysian digital bank from the ground up and be at the forefront of the fast-evolving Malaysian fintech landscape is incredibly exciting. Aside from leveraging agile banking technology that will enable us to offer tailored and unique banking experiences for our consumers, my team and I will also tap on the strong support from our shareholders and strategic partners, as well as guidance from Bank Negara Malaysia and the Ministry of Finance, to deliver on our mission to serve and empower underbanked Malaysian communities such as gig workers and small businesses. We will also actively partner with leading industry players to advance the Malaysian financial landscape.” 

The digital bank joint venture between Grab and Singtel was formed in 2020 and selected to be awarded a full digital banking licence in Singapore.

Jakarta, Indonesia – To honour the resilience and self-belief shown by Indonesians during the pandemic, Grab Indonesia has partnered with OTT video streaming service Viu to launch a six-part series titled ‘Cerita Tentang Percaya’, which in English translates to ‘Stories of Belief’. 

The series is inspired by real-life stories of Indonesians who persevered, dared to fail, and rose again during the pandemic. Each of the 22-minute episodes of the show, which is streamed on Viu, focuses on a different story of survival during the pandemic. It has also been timed to launch with Grab’s ad campaign ‘Percaya’, which in English translates to ‘belief’, that salutes the resilient spirit of Indonesians. 

A collaborative effort of three players – The Academy Consulting (TAC), Iron Hill Media (IHM) and Passion Pictures Indonesia (PASSION). The original concept and strategy were pitched to Grab and Viu by TAC, while IHM fleshed out the six stories, and PASSION executed the production with film director Hafiz Ibrahim.

Melinda Savitri, Grab Indonesia’s country marketing head, commented that they are pleased to have partnered with Viu for ‘Cerita Tentang Percaya‘ series, which reflects the character of Indonesians, who are known to be extremely persistent – relentlessly trying again and again to overcome challenges. 

“As an inseparable element of the nation, Grab stands and fights with all Indonesians. Through collaboration with Viu and supported by TAC, PASSION, and IHM, we want the audience to feel a connection that this is a story about all of us, a story about celebrating the fight itself,” said Savitri.

Meanwhile, Varun Mehta, Viu Indonesia’s country manager, said, “The core concept of Cerita Tentang Percaya the series appealed to us greatly and that is why we wanted to partner with Grab by providing a platform where not only these stories but also the creativity of Indonesian content can be seen by a larger audience both in Indonesia and internationally.” 

Sheen S Singh, the founder of TAC, IHM & PASSION Malaysia-Indonesia-Thailand, noted that it was a proactive initiative that was developed by the team at TAC which has found that there is a fast-growing appetite amongst the consumers for long-form entertainment and an opportunity for brands to entertain and engage with them by telling relevant stories. 

“From a creative perspective, this series was designed to entertain with the brand being a part of life versus having the stories evolve around the brand. The content we aspire to produce for brands will always put “entertainment” first to ensure it is widely viewed. We are thankful to Grab and Viu for recognising this opportunity,” said Singh.

The platform has been streaming two episodes each week with the last episode scheduled to be shown on the 27th of April.

Manila, Philippines – In a bid to aid the growing number of food-related small businesses in the Philippines, Grab Philippines has launched a new program called ‘Indie Eats’, which aims to help merchant-partners amplify their presence on GrabFood and bring their offerings to the spotlight.

‘Indie Eats’ hosts a full roster of small and local merchant-partners that are perfect for every craving. Whether you’re looking for refreshing mango coolers to beat the heat from ‘Mango Series’, the hearty and comforting taste of lugaw (rice porridge) from ‘Lugaw ni Pinggoy’, or a quick bite of your favourite pastries from ‘Panaderia Pantoja’, Grab has you covered with its range of merchant-partners.

With Indie Eats, Grab hopes to provide assistance to their vast community of small and local merchant-partners. Those interested to onboard can partake in Grab’s upskilling seminars, providing training in building their brand and menu. This ensures that merchant-partners are able to improve their brand every step of the way. 

All in all, the program also aims to inspire its merchant-partners to become the best brands they can be, and be on their way to exciting more consumers with their offerings.

Martin Luchangco, head of merchants and partnerships at Grab Philippines, said, “At Grab, we are always ready to provide support to our merchant-partners to ensure they are able to meet success and have a rewarding experience on our platform; in particular, small food businesses hold a lot of potential not just in Grab but in our local food industry as a whole. Indie Eats is just one of the many ways we want to help them in being discovered by more Filipinos, and reach success with us.”

Manila, Philippines – Following the latest order from the Philippine Competition Commission (PCC) to Grab Philippines to return ₱19.3m in refunds to its customers, the company released a new statement, stating that they have complied with the disbursement order of the PCC, adding they have disbursed the full administrative fee in a manner consistent with the agreed mechanics with the PCC.

A spokesperson from Grab Philippines said that since the first order directing Grab Philippines to disburse the administrative fees to eligible passengers last November 14, 2019, Grab Philippines has been proactively monitoring said redemption. Immediately upon its receipt of the PCC Order, Grab Philippines has outlined to the PCC its suggested measures to address this situation and has been eagerly awaiting the PCC’s response.

“Grab Philippines remains fully committed to complying with its undertakings and commitments and doing right by its stakeholders, and is proactively working with the PCC to exhaust all possible measures to ensure that the remaining administrative fee is redeemed by all eligible passengers,” said Grab. 

They also added that following regulations from Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP), those who have completed the basic know-your-customer (KYC) process can directly redeem the amount which was credited on their GrabPay Wallet accounts.

“Eligible passengers who have not yet completed their basic KYC are required to complete this BSP-mandated process prior to redemption. Grab cannot credit their GrabPay Wallet without completion of basic KYC as this is a regulatory requirement of the BSP,” they further stated.

The company also added that it has yet to receive the final decision of the PCC on the recommendations for those eligible passengers lacking the mandatory KYC.

“We would like to reassure our kababayans that we will continue to work with the competition commission to ensure that the remaining administrative fee amount is fully-redeemed–and focus our efforts in helping the Philippine economy recover,” they concluded.

Manila, Philippines – The Philippines Competition Commission (PCC), the country’s organisation dedicated to regulate business competition, has ordered Grab Holdings, Inc. and its subsidiary MyTaxi.PH, Inc. to pay ₱19.3m (US$368k) in refunds to its users.

The commission found out that only 24.1% of the total refund has been claimed from Grab by eligible passengers as of 15 June 2021, or ₱6.15m out of the total ₱25.45m penalty required by the PCC to be returned to Grab users.

PCC is giving Grab until 22 April to refund the remaining amounts to eligible users, noting that the refund should be immediately credited via GrabPay Wallet without requiring any act from the users to claim the amount.

PCC Chair Arsenio M. Balisacan said, “The penalties are in the form of a refund to remind Grab that every pricing or booking violation committed against passengers shall be paid back to passengers. Grab should immediately release the refunds and continue to adhere to its commitments.”

The antitrust agency previously penalised Grab a total of ₱63.7 million since 2018 for violations of its price and service quality commitments. It was in late 2019 when the Commission imposed on Grab the penalty to return a portion of its commissions to Grab’s passengers for violating its price monitoring commitment.

It has since ordered Grab to issue refunds in the amounts of ₱5.05m in November 2019, ₱14.15m in December 2019, and ₱6.25m in October 2020.

The penalties were the result of Grab’s takeover of Uber in 2018, which raised competition concerns and was subjected to a PCC Decision committing the merged entity to a standard as if it had a rival. During the monitoring period, PCC found that the ride-hailing company committed extraordinary pricing deviations, which resulted in the three sets of penalties.

“The PCC remains steadfast in monitoring Grab’s commitments to temper the firm’s dominance in the ride-hailing market. These measures are in place to prevent Grab from exercising monopolistic behaviour due to its unchallenged market power,” Balisacan said.

He added, “Through the years, the commitment measures are meant to be temporary in disciplining Grab while waiting for the market to mature with new major players. A more permanent pro-competition solution here is to open the market to more Transport Network Companies that can truly rival Grab on the same level.”

Philippines — Just in time for International Women’s Day, Grab Philippines is opening a fresh offering in its super app – where users can now make bookings for salon and wellness home services. This is specifically in partnership with PH-based beauty and wellness service platform Parlon.

Staying true to the theme of IWD, the said partnership in fact aims to encourage women to celebrate and get pampered safely and conveniently at the comfort of their homes. This campaign marks the first salon home service partnership in the region and features popular salon favourites Marqed Salon, The Secret Lounge, Benibana Beauty Hub, Vine Aesthetics, Lay Bare, and Passionails. Home service appointments on haircuts, beauty treatments, and grooming services from these salons are now available via the Grab app with more Parlon partner salons expected to be onboarded after launch.

Claire Ongcangco, CEO of Parlon, said that this is a very important milestone for Parlon because it has always been their mission to digitalize the salon and wellness industry.

“We’re not just here to create a marketplace or software. We aim to build an ecosystem and we strongly believe that home service will play a part in the industry’s future as we continue to navigate a post-pandemic life. We’re very happy to be sharing this breakthrough with Grab and we’re hoping that this partnership is just the beginning of many revolutionary firsts for both of us,” Ongcango said.

Anton Bautista, head of deliveries for Grab Philippines, commented, “We are delighted to have Parlon and their partner salons available in the Grab app through GrabMart. As a leading everyday super app in Southeast Asia, Grab is constantly looking for ways to make lives better for each and every Filipino. This International Women’s Month, our partnership with Parlon will bring the most-trusted salon brands closer to every Filipina and even bring excellent beauty services right to their homes through a tap of a button. This partnership strengthens our mission of creating an ecosystem of different everyday essentials easily available to our consumers.”

The promotion values at a minimum of PHP 3,000 excluding the transportation fee, customers may book home service via the GrabMart option, selecting their chosen salon and service, picking a time slot, and checking out their appointments—just like how food is ordered. Multiple services from one salon also can be booked for a total pampering experience.

“We’ve entered this partnership with both the consumers and the salon industry in mind. At Parlon, we want to give consumers easily accessible options to book their home service appointments while keeping the comfort of salon owners and staff as well. We’re confident that with Grab’s strong reputation of delivering safe and convenient rides, our beauty providers won’t have to worry about the hassle of travelling with all their tools and equipment,” Ongcangco said.

Through this collaboration, stylists and beauty technicians will enjoy hassle-free car transport services to and from their client’s houses for every appointment.

Singapore – Live streaming solutions BeLive Technology has piloted a live shopping campaign with Southeast Asian super app Grab called ‘Grab Live Beta’. The said campaign is now first available in Vietnam as well as Thailand. 

‘Grab Live Beta’ will allow participating merchants on Grab to engage with consumers in real-time, while increasing their overall visibility and brand awareness. Some of the features available in the live shopping campaign include addressing enquiries via the chat function and a new virtual gifting beta feature that allows consumers to show their support for content or influencers that interest them.

Commenting on the new partnership between BeLive Technology and Grab, Kenneth Tan, CEO and co-founder at BeLive Technology, said, “BeLive Technology is delighted to power live streams for Southeast Asia’s leading super-app, Grab. Merchants on Grab Live would be able to build meaningful connections with their customers and order directly on lossless, low-latency live video. This collaboration reinforces our commitment to empowering brands around the world.”

The new campaign follows after BeLive Technology has recently raised S$6m in a bridge funding round, bringing the company’s total funding to S$10m. BeLive Technology operates from Singapore and Vietnam, and has delivered 3.7 billion minutes of live video to over 100 million viewers worldwide.

Singapore — Global media and tech company Yahoo has unveiled its latest ad solution, Video Lite, in Asia-Pacific (APAC) that will elevate the video assets of brands for a stronger storytelling experience. Among those who had already utilised the new feature are transport company Grab, and delivery platform foodpanda.

Video Lite is available for private marketplace (PMP) campaigns via Yahoo Exchange, which allows advertisers to raise existing video creatives for digital media placements through the addition of end cards or branded frames, (Call To Action) CTA buttons and messages.

Yahoo cites the inspiration for the new feature as the massive digitisation wave continues across Southeast Asia, which recorded 60 million new internet users in 2021 alone. Notably, in SEA, e-commerce has experienced an unstoppable growth, valued at approximately US$120b in 2021 and forecasted to increase significantly by 2025 to be worth US$234b.

Although Yahoo recognises the strengths of videos as a medium and channel for brands to captivate audiences, the company says it is not known for causing actionable responses compared to other ad formats. But with Video Lite, brands will unlock stronger storytelling by helping brands bridge video’s convenience gap for consumers and close the loop, taking them from experience to action through a clearer path to purchase while also emphasising brand visuals and messaging.

The new video component has two new features: Branded Frames, and End Cards. Brand frames, fit for videos up to 30 seconds, give access to complementary graphics, text ad copies and CTA buttons to be added seamlessly alongside a minimised video to reinforce key brand visuals and messaging and provide a direct path to purchase. Meanwhile End Cards, suitable for shorter videos up to 15 seconds, create a one-click checkout point, when attention is at its peak, by maximising graphics and text ad copies with CTA buttons, emphasising key brand visuals and messaging with a direct path to purchase, at the end of existing video assets.

Shrivardhan Sarda, head of buyer development of Yahoo APAC, commented, “For many APAC advertisers, especially e-commerce brands, conversions remain the primary focus in their advertising campaigns. Our new Video Lite feature seeks to enhance brand storytelling through videos – optimising creatives for digital media placements by giving greater emphasis to important messages and forging a clearer path for consumers to complete their conversion journey with clear, actionable CTAs.”

Hadi Surya Koe, head of marketing Grabfood – Grab Indonesia, said,“We’re delighted to become one of the first users of Video Lite in the region. Makanthon is our marquee campaign of the year and we’re glad we got to explore new ways of reaching new audiences. We look forward to utilising more innovative ways to connect with our customers through collaboration with platforms and solutions, like Yahoo.”

Grab Indonesia utilised Video Lite by adding a branded frame to their existing video asset for their GrabFood and GrabMart prominent campaign, Makanthon 2021. The branded frame emphasised time urgency and highlighted the chance for customers to win prizes, namely gold, smartphones, and a luxury car, with a clear CTA button for users to make a purchase or order immediately. The campaign ran between Nov 16 and Dec 26 December on Yahoo’s owned and operated properties in Indonesia.

Meanwhile, foodpanda in Singapore also utilised Video Lite, with a branded frame over their “We’ve got you Santa!” video to drive awareness for its holiday Christmas campaign. The branded frame sought to up the ante on the Christmas spirit and emphasise foodpanda’s “we’ve got you” commitment to its customers to help with their gifting, feasting and festive needs that is conveniently just a tap away with the “Order Now” CTA button. The campaign ran from Dec 6 to 26 on Yahoo’s owned and operated properties in Singapore, alongside other premium lifestyle publishers in the country. 

Laura Kantor, marketing and sustainability director for foodpanda Singapore, shared, “Time is increasingly becoming a scarce resource for all of us. Being in the business of convenience, we know how much our customers appreciate having things delivered to them in a timely manner – and this goes for the content that they consume as well. With Video Lite, we can now enhance the way we engage with our customers by providing them with bite-sized videos that are visually engaging and easily digestible, therefore ensuring maximum recall.”

On the success of the two partnerships, Sarda said that better ads are better for everyone. According to him, as a consumer, better ads improve the browsing experience and clearer CTAs deliver convenience, shortening the path to purchase for immediate action.

“For brands, this will mean meaningful engagements at every touchpoint that will help realise their campaign goals and deliver maximum ROI. We’re excited to have piloted Video Lite with Grab and foodpanda in SEA, and we look forward to empowering more brands and helping them forge a path to engage with their target audiences at scale,” Sarda said.

The Video Lite feature can now be availed by agencies and advertisers across APAC, and enhanced video ads can be executed on their preferred DSP with PMP deals using Yahoo Exchange.