Malaysia’s transport regulator has warned e-hailing companies against discriminatory practices after Grab, the country’s largest ride-hailing service, started charging a premium on customers requesting Mandarin-speaking drivers.
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The controversy erupted earlier this week when a screenshot went viral on social media, showing that the cost to book a ride with a Mandarin-speaking driver was up to 50 per cent higher than for similar rides without the language requirement.
It provoked outrage in Malaysia, where identity politics and rising ethno-nationalism have deepened mistrust between the Malay majority and the country’s ethnic Chinese and Indian minorities.
In response, the Land Public Transport Agency (Apad) issued a reminder to e-hailing providers that their licensing conditions require booking systems to be “fair and equitable to all drivers”. The agency warned that discrimination against e-hailing drivers was a criminal offence, carrying penalties of up to 200,000 ringgit (US$47,200) in fines and two years’ imprisonment.
Apad, in a statement on Thursday, said it was “committed to ensuring the sustainability of e-hailing services as a fair and inclusive public transportation service that is free from any form of discrimination towards all stakeholders”.
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Grab had earlier defended the Mandarin driver option as a pilot project, launched in response to a surge in tourist arrivals from China. The number of Chinese visitors reached 1.4 million in the first four months of 2025, according to Tourism Malaysia, a 38 per cent year-on-year increase.
“This experiment was crucial in testing the sustainability and demand among tourists, as we work towards introducing support for additional languages,” Grab said in a statement on Thursday.