Singapore’s ride-hailing and meals supply firm Seize has signed an settlement for its automobile rental unit Seize Leases to accumulate Trans-cab, town state’s third largest taxi operator.
The deal, Seize’s first native competitor acquisition, is predicted to shut within the fourth quarter of 2023 and contains “Trans-cab’s taxi and automobile rental enterprise, upkeep workshops and gas pump operations.” Based in 2003, Trans-cab began with a fleet of fifty taxis and tried to go public twice. It now operates a fleet of greater than 2,500 automobiles.
The monetary phrases of the deal weren’t disclosed, however based on a report by The Straits Occasions, the acquisition measurement is estimated at round $75 million.
The Nasdaq-listed ride-hailing large says the acquisition will permit Seize to offer a extra in depth base of drivers. Seize needs to deal with Singapore’s driver scarcity challenge as experience demand rebounded after town state lifted the pandemic restrictions.
“By boosting the variety of drivers on our platform and serving to them to function extra effectively, we enhance how shortly and reliably we discover a experience for our passengers every time they want one,” Yee Wee Tang, managing director of Seize Singapore, stated in a press release.
The acquisition comes only a month after the Southeast Asian supper app operator laid off greater than a thousand staff, or about 11% of its workers.
Trans-cab drivers will be part of the Seize platform and obtain advantages supplied to the present Seize drivers, together with free protection by means of Seize’s Private Accident Insurance coverage and entry to the GrabAcademy program, which helps the drivers study abilities, together with information analytics and digital advertising. Rewards by means of loyalty applications additionally shall be supplied to the drivers.
Seize plans to combine its driver utility into Trans-cab’s cellular show items to digitize the enterprise. Seize’s know-how will allow Trans-cab taxi drivers to handle their earnings and obtain bookings from Seize’s platform and the prevailing name heart of Trans-cab.
“Client behaviors have shifted and we’ve acknowledged for a while the necessity to digitize the enterprise and guarantee our taxi drivers can proceed to be aggressive,” Jasmin Tan, common supervisor of Trans-cab, stated.
Consolidation through mergers and acquisitions is on the rise within the tech trade as tight personal capital and a gradual preliminary public providing market as a result of financial downturn impacted by rising inflations and high-interest fee headwinds.
In April, Singapore’s SMRT introduced its ride-hailing operator Strides Taxi would merge with Premier Taxis to carry collectively a mixed fleet of about 2,500 taxis, changing into the nation’s second-largest taxi operator. ComfortDelgro has about 60% of the market share in Singapore, with a fleet of about 8,800 taxis.