SAN FRANCISCO -- Uber Technologies Inc. announced it has agreed to buy Delivery Hero SE, continuing the consolidation trend in a food delivery sector that rapidly expanded during the COVID pandemic.
Uber agreed to buy pay $14.8 billion to acquire Delivery Hero’s operations in 50 markets. Completion of the deal, which requires regulatory approval, would expand Uber’s presence in Asia, the Middle East and Latin America.
"Delivery Hero’s talented team has built an extraordinary business, with beloved local brands and leading positions across many of the world's fastest-growing delivery markets,” Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said in a statement.
Uber said the combination should accelerate innovation and deliver meaningful benefits for consumers, merchants, couriers, and drivers.
“By bringing together Uber’s global technology platform with Delivery Hero’s strong local brands, merchant relationships, and delivery capabilities, the combined businesses will be better positioned to offer consumers greater choice, enhanced value, and a more seamless Uber One membership experience across more of their daily needs,” according to the statement released today.
Uber said merchants would benefit from increased demand from the combined company’s large, highly engaged, and growing user base as well as enhancement of advertising, promotional, and local commerce tools. For couriers and drivers, a denser combined network is expected to drive higher order volumes, improved utilization, and a broader range of delivery and mobility earning opportunities.
The transaction nearly doubles the number of markets where Uber will offer both mobility and delivery services, from 34 to 58 markets, substantially broadening the addressable base for Uber’s cross-platform strategy.
“The food delivery business is highly competitive and scale dependent. It is challenging to build from a European base, yet we have achieved an enormous amount over 15 years,” said Kristin Skogen Lund, chair of the supervisory board at Berlin-based Delivery Hero. “Joining forces with a strong partner now is the right move for Delivery Hero to best secure its future competitiveness and ability to deliver value for all our stakeholders.”
