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May 16, 2018 / 16:28

Law violation signs found in Uber-Grab deal

Vietnam`s supervisory agency today announces some signs of law-breaking in the deal of Grab acquiring Uber`s South East Asia operations.

Specifically, the Vietnam Competition Authority (VCA) of the Ministry of Industry & Trade (MoIT) has finished its one-month-long inquiry, which initially found that the merger pushed Grab Taxi’s market share in Vietnam to over 50%. The move, hence can breach the rules on economic concentration, under the Law on Competition.
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The VCA is currently considering an official investigation, in which it will handle the related documents to Competition Council for solving.
According to Vietnam’s 2004 Competition Law, firms involved in a merger with combined share in the relevant market from 30% to 50% without announcing that to competition regulators prior to the deal, could be subject to a fine equivalent to 10% of revenue of the fiscal year ahead. Meanwhile, the deal with the combined share in after acquisition over 50% can be prohibited.  
Earlier, in document submitted to the Bureau, GrabTaxi said the combined share in Vietnam after the deal remains under 30%, while Grab claimed that the deal’s stake holders “have no obligation to announce that to competition before starting and finishing the deal.”
Grab on late March confirmed that it has acquired Uber's South-east Asia operations for an undisclosed sum, in return Uber would take a 27.5% stake in Grab. As at April 8, Uber has officially ended its operation in Vietnam, along with the closing of its representative office.