“On top of that, we are also proposing a daily fine of RM15,000 from today,” MyCC CEO Iskandar Ismail announced today.

He said the decision was based on complaints on Grab since it took over Uber services in Malaysia last year.

Following the merger, Grab became the dominant player in the local e-hailing industry.

Iskandar said the commission has given Grab one month to come up with its defence.

“Commission chairman Hishamudin Yunus will listen to their oral submissions,” he told reporters at the MyCC office here.

FMT has contacted Grab for a response.

Iskandar said Grab’s merger with Uber in the South East Asia market had affected the e-hailing industry in Malaysia.

“Grab has become very dominant in the industry. The company has also a restrictive clause that prevents their drivers to promote other e-hailing companies in their cars.

“Bear in mind, drivers only drive for Grab using their own cars and they are not Grab’s employees,” he added.

Uber sold their South East Asian division to Grab in March 2018.

Consumer groups and e-hailing drivers had warned that the move would lead to Grab’s monopoly in the e-hailing market.

Malaysia is the third country in the region to penalise Grab over its deal with Uber, after Singapore and the Philippines.

The Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (CCCS) last year fined Grab and Uber S$13 million.

CCCS said that the fine was imposed to “deter completed, irreversible mergers that harm competition”.

Iskandar said that the commission seeks to amend the Competition Act, in an attempt to stop future mergers such as Grab and Uber.