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Grab plans to double Singapore headcount to 3,000 by end-2020
Grab plans to double the number of its employees in Singapore to 3,000 by the end of 2020 when its new regional headquarters at one-north business park is completed.
The ride-hailing firm made the announcement on Friday (29 March) at the groundbreaking ceremony for the building.
Grab plans to add 1,000 new tech roles this year to the 2,000 workers currently at its seven research and development centres in Singapore, Beijing, Seattle, Bangalore, Ho Chi Minh City, Kuala Lumpur and Jakarta.
“Singapore will continue to serve as the strategic base from which we will contribute to the growth of Southeast Asia,” Anthony Tan, Grab’s co-founder and CEO, said at the event. When completed, the building will house Grab’s largest R&D centre.
In January, Grab signed an 11-year lease for the building to be developed and managed by Ascendas Real Estate Investment Trust (Ascendas Reit) for $181.2 million. Grab has a renewal option of five years for the building, which will have an estimated gross floor area of 42,310 square metres.
Backed by investors such as SoftBank Group, Microsoft and Didi Chuxing, Grab is expanding rapidly and aiming to become Asia’s largest transportation platform after acquiring Uber’s Southeast Asian operations last year.
The company last year launched a venture arm and opened its platform to startups through the Grab Ventures Velocity programme.
Tan announced that the programme is open for another batch of applications, with a focus on solutions to faster and more affordable grocery deliveries.
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