Grab Holdings has a new favourite number. For the third quarter of 2026, it is US$237 million, a record Adjusted EBITDA, the nineteenth consecutive quarter of growth, and the figure the Nasdaq-listed superapp leaned on to raise its full-year guidance.
The number it would rather you skim past is US$18 million. That is what actually reached the bottom line, barely changed from US$17 million a year ago and a long way down from the US$235 million headline profit it posted in Q2.
The gap tells you how much of Grab’s story still lives in adjusted metrics, fair-value swings and, increasingly, its customers’ bank deposits.
Also Read: Southeast Asia’s US$1T digital dream slips five years, and AI is the new reason to keep believing
To be fair, the top line has rarely looked healthier. Revenue grew 27 per cent year-on-year to US$1.11 billion (30 per cent at constant currency), monthly transacting users hit a record 57 million, and operating profit nearly quadrupled to US$108 million. Grab now expects 2026 revenue of US$4.15 billion to US$4.20 billion and Adjusted EBITDA of US$790 million to US$800 million.
The profit that leaked out below the line
Between operating profit and net profit sit the usual non-operating suspects: a US$57 million net fair-value loss on financial assets and liabilities, a US$12 million impairment on an equity-accounted investee, lower finance income and a heavier tax bill. Grab separately notes that the conversion feature of its US$1.5 billion convertible notes is treated as a derivative under IFRS and revalued every quarter, which injects volatility into profit without touching cash.
Grab itself warns that profit will keep showing “a degree of variability”. Translation: the bottom line will wobble regardless of how many rides and meals it sells. Adjusted EBITDA strips all of that out, along with share-based compensation, M&A costs and restructuring, which is precisely why it keeps setting records.
Then there is the incentive bill. Grab spent US$737 million on partner and consumer incentives in the quarter, equal to roughly two-thirds of its revenue. On-Demand incentives rose 64 basis points to 10.7 per cent of GMV, which Grab attributes to securing driver supply and pushing new products. The ratio dipped 17 basis points quarter-on-quarter, but a year after e27 flagged Grab’s incentive dependence in its Q3 2025 numbers, the trend has not turned.
The bank is now the growth engine, and much of it was bought
The most striking shift is in Financial Services. Segment revenue jumped 124 per cent to US$201 million, and Adjusted EBITDA turned positive for the first time at US$12 million. The gross loan portfolio tripled to US$2.7 billion, while loans disbursed rose 115 per cent to US$1.9 billion in the quarter.
Much of that growth was acquired rather than built. The figures include the consolidation of Indonesia’s Superbankfrom June and the Stash acquisition from this quarter. Strip out Superbank and the loan book grew 115 per cent, still fast but a different headline. September’s agreement to pay US$1.49 billion for 60 per cent of Atome Financialsuggests the credit push has barely begun.
Credit quality looks contained for now. Non-performing loans at 90 days past due stood at 2.6 per cent of the book, with expected credit loss reserves of 6.5 per cent, roughly 2.4 times coverage. But Grab also lists higher net impairment losses on financial assets as a drag on operating profit, an early reminder that lending to drivers, merchants and thin-file consumers carries costs ride-hailing never did.
Also Read: GoTo’s 27B model speaks Batak, but the real test is who can afford to run it
The bank also flatters the cash flow. Operating cash flow of US$55 million improved by US$182 million year-on-year, driven by a US$404 million larger inflow of deposits at GXS Bank, GXBank and Superbank, partly offset by US$294 million more in loan disbursals. Deposits now total US$2.7 billion, matching the loan book almost dollar for dollar. Adjusted Free Cash Flow of US$286 million (US$533 million on a trailing twelve-month basis) excludes lending and deposit flows and, since Q2, treasury liquidity changes as well, a definitional tweak worth keeping in mind when comparing periods.
Cheaper rides, more drivers, flat margins
Mobility is where the macro pressure shows. Citing elevated fuel prices, Grab has gone cheaper and broader: transactions grew 21 per cent against GMV growth of 14 per cent, implying smaller average fares. Mobility revenue rose just 10 per cent to US$349 million, and segment margin held flat at 8.9 per cent of GMV.
Active driver-partners grew 20 per cent to an all-time high, helped by supply incentives tied to an electric vehicle push. EVs now account for 18 per cent of completed four-wheel trips, up from 13 per cent in Q1, a meaningful hedge in a region where fuel price spikes swing driver earnings.
Deliveries fared better. Revenue rose 21 per cent to US$561 million and segment EBITDA climbed 58 per cent to US$123 million, with margin widening to 2.7 per cent of GMV on the back of advertising, where active self-serve advertisers grew 39 per cent. Merchant-partners grew only 7 per cent, though their average earnings rose 15 per cent. Grab is squeezing more from the merchants it already has.
GoTo is running the same playbook on a tighter leash
GoTo’s Q3 net profit of Rp441 billion (about US$24.6 million) edged past Grab’s, but Indonesia’s 8 per cent commission cap cost Gojek US$8.4 million in the quarter, with GoPay covering the shortfall. Both superapps are converging on the same conclusion: payments and credit, not rides, pay the bills.
Regulators remain the wildcard. Taiwan’s Fair Trade Commission blocked Grab’s US$600 million foodpanda Taiwan deal in October, leaving a US$60 million break fee for Q4, booked under IFRS but excluded from Adjusted EBITDA.
Also Read: Grab invests in EBOOST as Vietnam’s EV charging race shifts into higher gear
Meanwhile, Grab repurchased US$400 million of shares in September and October, with US$500 million left on its programmes, and expects cumulative buybacks since 2024 to reach US$1.75 billion, retiring over 10 per cent of shares. Gross cash liquidity slipped to US$7.1 billion from US$7.4 billion. Buybacks, an Atome cheque and a fast-growing loan book will all draw on the same pool.
Anthony Tan insists Southeast Asia remains under-penetrated, and he is probably right. But Q3 shows Grab’s newest profit engine is lending money into that market. Whether the book holds when the cycle turns will show up first in the impairment line, not the press release.
The post Grab’s Q3 shows a superapp quietly turning into a lender appeared first on e27.