Gojek, the Indonesian all-purpose supper app provider, is nearing an agreement to buy 5% of top local taxi operator PT Blue Bird, according to people familiar with the matter.

Gojek would pay about US$30mil , the people said, asking not to be named discussing a private matter. That implies a price of more than 20% above what Blue Bird closed at in Jakarta on Monday and would value the company at about US$600mil .

The deal would build on an existing partnership - closely held Gojek already offers taxi reservations for Blue Bird’s taxis on its app - as the companies face mounting competition from Singapore-based Grab Holdings Inc. It would also mark as one of the latest investments for Gojek, which at US$10bil is the country’s most valuable startup, as it expands in areas such as food delivery and digital payments.

Asked to comment, Gojek said it doesn’t comment on market speculation. A Blue Bird representative couldn’t immediately comment.

Blue Bird shares fell 4.8% on Monday, their biggest drop since September 2018, after rallying a record 29% during the final two trading days of last week.

 - Bloomberg