SINGAPORE - NTUC FairPrice has signed an agreement with ride-hailing operator Grab to launch a new subscription service.

Consumers who sign up for the new service will enjoy exclusive savings, rebates and access to grocery and transport services, FairPrice and Grab said in a joint statement on Monday (Jan 15).

The partnership is "designed to complement consumers' online-to-offline lifestyle, while offering better value, convenience and access (to) essential goods and services in Singapore", they added.

FairPrice chief executive Seah Kian Peng said the supermarket chain's collaboration with Grab is part of its ongoing efforts to cater to the evolving needs of the community.

Grab co-founder and group CEO Anthony Tan said the partnership is "mutually beneficial" and will allow Grab customers to benefit from additional discounts and perks from FairPrice.

"With both supermarket and transport services as part of this initiative, we are thrilled to provide greater cost savings and convenience for time-strapped Singaporeans," he added.

No other details are currently available about the new service, which is expected to be launched in the first quarter of this year.

Grab, which announced in October last year that it had secured debt financing of up to US$700 million (S$952 million) from various global and regional banks, has launched several services. The move is aimed at expanding its business beyond taxi-hailing and private-hire car services.

As part of its effort to move into the burgeoning electronic payment sector, Grab announced last August that it aimed to expand its GrabPay mobile wallet platform to 1,000 bricks-and-mortar merchants by the end of 2017.