After its merger with Didi Chuxing in China, Uber is set to sell its Southeast Asian business to rival Grab in exchange for a majority stake.

The move has been hailed as a strategy  to help Uber manage its costs in preparation for an IPO as soon as next year. However, the deal hasn't been finalised yet, as reported by CNBC.

The merger will further help Japanese tech giant SoftBank which is building a significant portfolio in ride-sharing companies as it  owns stakes in Uber, Didi Chuxing, Grab and Indian ride sharing company Ola. 

Grab earlier raised around US$2 bn (S$2.7 bn) from Didi Chuxing and SoftBank Group to cement its position as market leader in an ongoing battle with Uber and Go-Jek of Indonesia.

Uber recently agreed to a $245m settlement with Waymo over stolen self-driving technologies.