UOB forges digital payments service alliance with Grab

Customers can pay and top up their GrabPay wallets directly from their UOB bank accounts.

Grab and United Overseas Bank (UOB) have entered into a strategic alliance to accelerate the use of digital services amongst ASEAN’s tech-savvy consumers, an announcement revealed.

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The partnership enables UOB to provide financial services to Grab’s user base, as well as accelerate the bank’s efforts in meeting the needs of the region’s ‘mobile-first’ and ‘mobile only’ consumers.

“Under the alliance, UOB will become Grab’s preferred banking partner in Singapore,” the firms said in a joint statement. “UOB will also be a strategic credit card partner for Grab in Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam.”

The bank will also be providing support for Grab such as fleet financing, regional and centralised treasury management solutions and workplace banking services. In return, Grab can tap into UOB’s cash management services to provide customers with a number of payment solutions, as well as enable consumers to top up their GrabPay wallets directly from their bank account.

“We are thrilled to welcome UOB as our strategic partner in Singapore and across the region,” Grab CEO and co-founder Anthony Tan said in a statement. “By combining our strengths, we will offer consumers more convenient payment services regionally and help more people move from cash to cashless.”

Both firms are also reportedly exploring the possibility of launching co-branded credit cards in ASEAN.