Booking invests $200m in Southeast Asia's Grab
Booking Holdings, which operates multiple online travel sites, has invested $200 million in Southeast Asia ride-hailing app Grab as part of a strategic partnership.
According to a release, Booking’s brands, which include Booking.com, Agoda, and Priceline, will add on-demand transport services, powered by Grab, through their apps. Grab users will gain access to accommodation booking services worldwide through the Grab app, and will be able to pay using Grab’s digital wallet service GrabPay.
The deal is similar to one struck earlier this year between Booking and Grab’s Chinese counterpart Didi Chuxing, under which Booking invested $500 million in Didi and the two companies agreed to integrate their mobility and travel services.
Booking’s investment follows a $2 billion funding round for Grab in August led by Toyota, with participation by a number of PE and VC investors. Since closing that round Grab has continued to pursue additional strategic partnerships, closing a deal with Microsoft earlier this month to collaborate on digital services. Microsoft also invested an undisclosed amount in Grab.
Grab has a presence in 235 cities across eight countries in Southeast Asia through its signature ride-hailing app, having acquired the regional operations of Uber in March. The company aims to provide a one-stop platform to meet a wide variety of needs along with taxi services, from cashless payments to online food ordering and parcel delivery.
“The online travel market in Southeast Asia is set to nearly triple by 2025, and we see numerous synergies between travel and transportation that will allow us to capitalize on this huge opportunity,” said Ming Maa, president of Grab. “As a global travel leader, Booking's investment into Grab is a vote of confidence in our continued ability to execute and expand into different O2O verticals."
Booking was founded as The Priceline Group in 1997 and operates in more than 220 countries and territories worldwide.
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