DiDi Chuxing on July 24 announced that it will co-lead in an investment of up to $2.0 billion to Grab, the leading on-demand transportation and mobile payments platform in Southeast Asia.

The latest financing round led by Didi Chuxing and SoftBank Group is expected to reinforce Grab’s dominant position in the region’s Internet economy to help consumers’ access safe transportation and financial products whilst creating employment opportunities.

With an anticipated total amount of $2.5 billion, this round is the largest single financing in the history of Southeast Asia.

Grab operates the largest transportation network in Southeast Asia and is one of the most frequently used mobile platforms in the region. It has been downloaded onto over 50 million mobile devices, giving passengers access to the region’s largest land transportation fleet comprising over 1.1 million.

It offers private car, Hitch, motorbike, taxi, carpooling and other services across 7 countries and 65 cities, dealing with nearly 3 million daily rides.

DiDi looks to build an open and sustainable global mobility ecosystem to advance transportation technology and product innovations. Since investing in Grab in 2015, it has established a network of partnerships with companies that collectively reach over 50% of the world’s population across more than 1,000 cities in North America, Southeast Asia, South Asia and South America.

“Starting with transport, Grab is establishing a clear leadership in Southeast Asia’s internet economy based on its market position, superior technology, and truly local insight. By deepening our strategic partnership, DiDi and Grab reaffirm our shared commitment to innovating localized solutions to global urban development challenges from the world’s fastest growing marketplaces. Both companies look forward to working together with communities and policymakers across Asia to fully embrace the extraordinary opportunities in the upcoming transportation revolution,” said Cheng Wei, Founder and CEO of DiDi.

“We are delighted to deepen our strategic partnership with DiDi and SoftBank. With their support, Grab will achieve an unassailable market lead in ridesharing, and build on this to make GrabPay the payment solution of choice for Southeast Asia,” said Group CEO and co-founder of Grab, Anthony Tan.