GRAB AND GO!

ANTHONY TAN IS AGGRESSIVELY STEERING GRAB INTO A COMPANY THAT HELPS LOW-INCOME EARNERS WHILE TAKING THE LION’S SHARE OF ITS INDUSTRY, HAVING OVERTAKEN UBER IN SOUTH–EAST ASIA.

- GRACE CHNG

Grab’s Co-Founder Anthony Tan has a passion: to improve the livelihood of low-income earners and to improve the safety of taxi rides in South-East Asia. Turning the passion into a business, he co-founded Grab in 2012 as a ride-hailing startup. In the process, he steered it into becoming South-East Asia’s most valuable tech startup, now worth a whopping US$14 billion.

Its app boasts more than 55 million downloads and records nearly three million rides daily. The company, with 6,000 employees globally, is operating in 500 cities and towns in Indonesia, Vietnam and five other countries in Southeast Asia. It has seven R&D centers worldwide including Singapore, Bangalore, and Seattle. In addition to ridesharing, Grab has expanded into other services such as food delivery, mobile payments, ticketing, and movie streaming.

Anthony, 37, is the face of Grab. Usually dressed in a Grab T-shirt or a simple black polo shirt, he has a warm, approachable manner, speaking softly but clearly about his convictions and aspirations for Grab. He and Co-Founder Tan Hooi Ling (no relation) believe strongly that they can improve the livelihood for the low-income group in South-East Asia.

A devoted family man, Anthony started dating his wife Chloe Tong while he was building Grab. Chloe, the daughter of Malaysian media magnate Tong Kooi Ong, kept Anthony company during his frequent and often last-minute travels. Married and with two kids, Anthony is never far from his family despite his punishing work schedule. His family is with him even at press shoots and he also has a baby cot in his office. Chloe is an understanding wife, he says, since he is always “switched on” and talks constantly about work. Both gym rats, they work out almost every day and choose to only stay in hotels with fitness centers.