Issues like price coordination, surge pricing and consolidation have raised red flags for the Singapore government Competition Commission

In early-December 2017, the Singaporean taxi company ComfortDelGro paid S$295 million (US$225 million) a majority stake (51 per cent) in Uber’s local car rental service Lion City Rentals.

The deal is now being closely scrutinised by the Singapore Competition Commission (SCC) to determine if the tie-up is in violation of local competition laws.

After an initial review, the agency decided it could not be certain the deal did not create competition issues. So, it has requested further information from both parties.

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The issues flagged by the SCC are as follows:

• Whether UberFLASH — which connects riders to the nearest private-hire or ComfortDelGro cab at a cheaper fare — involves price coordination between the two companies.

• Will ComfortDelGro still offer its flat fare service without surge pricing?

• Can drivers use other ride-hailing apps to book rides?

• Will consumers still have a variety of payment options?

• Does this tie-up hurt competition in the food delivery (Uber Eats) industry?

• Will non ride-hailing options (street hailing) be affected?

• Will it eliminate competition within the taxi industry because of consolidation?

• Does the deal bring about overall economic efficiencies?

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ComfortDelGro and Uber must submit proper documentation by March 5th to comply with Phase 2 of the review. At this point, the agency will begin an in-depth review, which includes public feedback.

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