KUALA LUMPUR (March 26): Grab confirmed today it has acquired rival Uber’s Southeast Asia operations to merge both ride-hailing companies' operations in the region.

Uber will take a 27.5% stake in Grab, and Uber chief executive officer (CEO) Dara Khosrowshahi will join Grab’s board, Grab and Uber said in a joint statement today.

"Grab will integrate Uber’s ridesharing and food delivery business in the region into Grab’s existing multi-modal transportation and fintech platform. With the combined business, Grab will drive towards becoming the #1 online-to-offline (O2O) mobile platform in Southeast Asia and a major player in food delivery.

"Grab provides the fundamental services Southeast Asia consumers care the most about: safe and affordable transport, food and package delivery, mobile payments and financial services," Grab and Uber said.

According to the statement, Grab will take over Uber’s operations and assets in Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.

Grab group CEO and co-founder Anthony Tan said in the statement that the acquisition of Uber's Southeast Asia operations marks the beginning of a new era. Tan said together with Uber, Grab is now in an even better position to fulfil its promise to outserve its customers.

"Their trust in us as a transport brand allows us to look towards the next step as a company: improving people’s lives through food, payments and financial services,” Tan said.

Khosrowshahi said in the statement that the deal is a testament to Uber’s exceptional growth across Southeast Asia over the last five years. He said the deal "will help us double down on our plans for growth, as we invest heavily in our products and technology."