- Uber agrees to acquire Delivery Hero for $14.8 billion, expanding global reach to 99 markets
- Uber will pay €41.50 per share, a 26% premium on its original offer from May
- Deal pending regulatory approval; Uber secured a €14 billion bridge loan for funding
Uber Technologies Inc. has agreed to buy Delivery Hero SE in a deal that values the German food-delivery company at $14.8 billion and dramatically expands the US firm's global operations.
Uber offered to pay €41.50 ($47.60) a share and will acquire Delivery Hero's operations in 50 markets, the company said in a statement on Thursday, confirming an earlier Bloomberg News report. The transaction is pending regulatory approval.
That's about a 26% premium on the €33 per share Uber originally offered in May, fueling Delivery Hero's stock, which is up 66% year to date. The shares were down slightly to €37.80 at 10:03 a.m. in Frankfurt on Thursday.
The food delivery market, which boomed during the Covid-19 pandemic and spawned dozens of players, has been rapidly consolidating in recent years. Ride-hailing company Uber has been making acquisitions overseas to strengthen its position internationally, where hometown rivals like DoorDash Inc. are making similar moves. DoorDash agreed to buy the UK's Deliveroo Plc last year, while Prosus struck a deal to acquire Just Eat Takeaway.com NV.
The acquisition marks a sizable expansion in Asia, Latin America and the Middle East for Uber and boosts its total markets to 99 from 79. Uber will fund the deal with its own cash and new debt and said it has secured a €14 billion bridge loan.
Prosus, a significant Delivery Hero shareholder, is selling down its entire 16.8% stake as part of the transaction.
Delivery Hero, formed in 2011, has been conducting a strategic review following pressure from shareholders, which include Aspex Management, the hedge fund that succeeded in ousting founder Niklas Östberg and has lobbied for more asset sales. The company's shares are up 68% so far this year.
Uber has committed to retain Delivery Hero's Berlin headquarters and corporate workforce until at least 2029, the German company said in a statement. The US firm also intends to invest about €2 billion in Germany through 2031.
In a separate transaction, investment firm SSW Partners will acquire 14 other markets for about $1.6 billion and will operate the businesses until it finds buyers for the assets, which include units in Austria, Norway, Spain, and Sweden. Hiving off some markets may ease any regulatory concerns about the deal.
SSW was co-founded by former Lazard Inc. banker Antonio Weiss as well as Quadrangle Group co-founder Joshua Steiner, who also serves as a board member of Bloomberg Inc., and former Goldman Sachs Group Inc. executive Eric Schwartz.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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