Uber's days might be numbered in Singapore

Car-sharing apps will be reviewed, regulators say.

Singapore is closing in on private car-sharing apps like uberX, as these apps produce an unfair advantage over regular cab drivers.

According to a blog post by Transport Minister Khaw Boon Wan, car-sharing apps like uberX need to be reviewed in order to level the transport playing field.

"Apparently, uberX signs on drivers to drive private hire cars to provide a booking type of transport service, and these drivers do not need a vocational licence unlike taxi drivers. While taxi drivers welcome competition, they demand that the playing field be level. I think our taxi drivers have a point," Minister Khaw said.

However, Minister Khaw also said that countries which have banned such apps have been "hasty in their judgment".

“We must not resist new innovations and new business models. Our instinct must be to flow with the time, keep an open mind to innovations. But we must always be fair to players, whether incumbent or insurgents, and strike a balanced approach,” he said.