Appeals Court defers ruling on MyCC appeal in anti-competition case against Grab

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The Court of Appeal has reportedly reserved its decision on the appeal filed by the Malaysian Competition Commission (MyCC) challenging the High Court's ruling.

The High Court's ruling quashed MyCC's proposed RM86.77 million fine against Grab Inc and two subsidiaries for alleged anti-competitive practices in the e-hailing sector.

According to media reports, Justice S. Nantha Balan, who led a three-judge panel, stated that the court requires additional time to consider the arguments presented by the counsels representing MyCC and the three companies - Grab Inc, GrabCar and Myteksi.

A case management session has reportedly been scheduled today (19 Nov) for the decision.

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Grab Inc, Grab Car and MyTeksi obtained a certiorari order from the High Court on 6 July 2023, annulling MyCC's proposed fine. This led MyCC to appeal the decision, said media reports.

During the hearing on Monday (18 Nov), MyCC's counsel Tommy Thomas reportedly argued that the companies' application for judicial review was premature, as the companies had not yet exhausted the appeal process outlined under the Competition Act 2010.

Thomas reportedly added that MyCC's decision to impose the proposed fine was not final and therefore, not subject to judicial review at this stage. He explained that MyCC's propose decision is part of its investigative procedure.

Grab Inc and its subsidiaries representative Malik Imtiaz Sarwar maintained that the High Court's ruling was correct. In response to Thomas, Malik reportedly said that MyCC's assertion of the proposed decision being part of the investigative process was flawed and that the Competition Commision Act stated that the issuance of the proposed decision comes as the investigation completes.

He added that while MyCC's decision was not final, it carried significant implications and adverse effects on the companies.

Meanwhile, across the border in Singapore, the Competition and Consumer Commission Singapore (CCCS) said Grab's plans to buy Singapore's third-largest taxi operator, Trans-cab, will "significantly weaken" competition by depriving them of an important source of drivers.

The CCCS said the acquisition is likely to entrench and strengthen Grab's already dominant position in the ride-hail platform market and infringes the law that prohibits anti-competitive mergers.

Data analysed by CCCS indicated that drivers who rent from ride-hail platform-owned fleets tend to use more of that ride-hail platform as compared to drivers who do not rent from such fleets.

In addition, there are also various strategies which may be employed by Grab to induce Trans-cab drivers to increase their usage of Grab’s ride-hail platform.

The merger is thus expected to result in a greater degree of “stickiness” of Trans-cab drivers to Grab’s ride-hail platform and a potential reduction in usage of rival ride-hail platforms, said CCCS. For consumers, this might mean higher prices and fewer choices for ride-hail platform services.

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