Tin Pei Ling joins Grab Singapore as director of public affairs and policy

MEMBER of Parliament Tin Pei Ling has joined ride-hailing and technology giant Grab as its Singapore director of public affairs and policy. Tin, who is the MP for MacPherson, joined the Nasdaq-listed company in January, Grab confirmed on Wednesday (Feb 1).

Her appointment was made public after the 39-year-old made an appearance that day at a Chinese New Year lunch that was hosted by Grab for about 750 private-hire drivers at a restaurant at Singapore Expo.

Tin was at the event alongside Grab Singapore’s managing director Yee Wee Tang and Senior Minister of State for Transport Amy Khor, who was the guest of honour.

When asked about her new job, Tin directed queries to her new employer.

Grab said in a statement: “Pei Ling has deep on-ground understanding of digital economy and Smart Nation policy, and close ties with the local community. She will build partnerships and programmes to harness the positive potential of technology to create impact in Singapore.”

Prior to joining Grab, Tin was chief executive of Business China, a non-profit organisation spearheaded by the Singapore Government and the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry. She left on Dec 2, 2022 after spending four-and-a-half years in the role, citing a desire to pursue interests in the private sector. The three-term MP remains part of Business China’s board of directors.

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Tin previously spent a year as group director of corporate strategy at Jing King Technology Group from May 2017 to May 2018. The Singapore company, now known as Adera Global, is involved in data security, artificial intelligence and automation.

Before that, Tin was a full-time MP.

In 2011, she resigned from her job as a business consultant at professional services company Ernst and Young after she was elected to Parliament as part of a five-member People’s Action Party team that won in Marine Parade GRC that year.

In 2015, Tin was fielded in single-seat MacPherson, which was carved out of Marine Parade GRC. She won 65.6 per cent of the vote in a three-cornered fight.

She defended her parliamentary seat in 2020, taking 71.74 per cent of the vote. Tin, who is married with two children, currently chairs the Government Parliamentary Committee (GPC) for Communications and Information, and is a member of the GPC for Culture, Community and Youth. THE STRAITS TIMES