Grab raises $700M in debt funding to expand its car rental program

Uber's Southeast Asian rival Grab has raised up to $700 million in debt financing from unnamed global and regional banks, the company announced over the weekend.

Grab, whose leasing programme helps in growing its driver network, said it would have the largest car rental fleet in Southeast Asia by the fourth quarter of 2018. This development comes less than 10 months after Grab announced a $2 billion round led by Chinese ride-hailing company Didi Chuxing and Japanese telecom conglomerate SoftBank Group, with an additional $500 million expected to be invested soon. This debt facility takes Grab to over $4 billion in funding.

This new capital will be used to buy vehicles which can then be provided to drivers on a leased basis. The overall aim is to use this flexible financing option to add drivers who can’t afford to buy cars to its platform. The company claims 1.8 million drivers across its seven countries in Southeast Asia.

Meanwhile, Grab has announced a partnership with SMRT, Singapore’s premier multi-modal land transport provider. Under this tie-up, Grab aims to build the largest and most advanced taxi and private-hire car fleet in Singapore. The fleet will include eco-friendly hybrid and fully electric vehicles.