Rocket Internet builds out stake in Delivery Hero to close to 40pc

FE Team | Published: March 24, 2015 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00

Rocket Internet AG has announced key strategic transactions to further strengthen its market leading position in the global online takeaway market, according to a statement issued from Berlin.
Capitalizing on the significant and rapidly developing opportunities in the online food & groceries sector, Rocket increased its ownership in Delivery Hero through the contribution of the recently acquired leading Middle Eastern online food takeaway company Talabat and the acquisition of shares from existing Delivery Hero investors for EUR 52 million.
Upon closing of these transactions, Rocket's stake in Delivery Hero amounts to c. 39 per cent. Based on its scale, geographic coverage and leadership position, Delivery Hero with its 24 countries and 62.6 million annualized orders (based on December 2014) is a key component of the Global Online Takeaway Group, complementing foodpanda and the two recent investments in La Nevera Roja (Spain) and Pizzabo (Italy).
Delivery Hero's expected Q1 2015 performance is testament to its strong operational and financial profile. The Delivery Hero management foresees order and gross merchandise volume growth of 150%+ relative to the same quarter of the year before with GMV in Q1 expected to amount to around EUR 250 million and net revenues in excess of EUR 30 million (+120% compared to Q1 2014).
Rocket furthermore announced a EUR 104 million funding round in foodpanda to capitalize on the significant growth opportunity and to allow for further selective investments in key markets. Rocket is participating with an investment of EUR 37 million in this funding round, is purchasing additional shares from existing shareholders and has received shares formerly held through Latam Internet Group through a share dividend thus increasing its direct ownership stake in foodpanda from below 50% to ca. 52%. These transactions are subject to closing.
Rocket intends to contribute its 11.4% stake in Yemeksepeti, the online takeaway market leader in Turkey, to the Global Online Takeaway Group. Yemeksepeti is present in 63 cities in Turkey and cooperates with nearly 10,000 restaurants.
Combining all investments in the sector including foodpanda, Delivery Hero, Talabat, La Nevera Roja, Pizzabo and Yemeksepeti, the Global Online Takeaway Group operates today in 71 countries - being number one in 58 of them - and works with 142 thousand restaurants and processes 84 million orders based on annualized December 2014 numbers (only countries include Yemeksepeti).
Oliver Samwer, CEO of Rocket Internet said: "Within the past weeks we have been able to build the Global Online Takeaway Group into a truly global operation, being present in more than 70 countries. Extending our stake in the fast growing Delivery Hero to almost 40% and increasing our direct ownership in the emerging market focused foodpanda are important steps in building the largest and the only truly global online takeaway marketplace in the world."
foodpanda raises $110m in new funding round
Meanwhile, foodpanda, the online food delivery marketplace active in 40 countries across five continents, today announces that it has secured another round of funding of USD 110 million. The sum comes from Rocket Internet AG, as well as other existing and new investors.
Since its launch in 2012, the company has now raised more than USD 200 Million. After acquiring key competitors this year in India, Mexico, Russia, Brazil, Eastern Europe, Middle East and Asia, the company will now further invest into product and technology, and continue focusing on customer service and loyalty for becoming the most convenient and most user friendly way of ordering food delivery or take-away.
Ralf Wenzel, Co-Founder and CEO of the foodpanda group said : "Over the last couple of months we have become the leading online food delivery marketplace across the most promising and fastest growing emerging markets. The new funding allows us to fully focus on user experience and customer service with the aim of completely disrupting the way people order food by establishing a real alternative to pizza flyers and phone calls.
Zubair B.A.Siddiky, Co-Founder and Managing Director of foodpanda Bangladesh commented: Since starting its journey in Bangladesh in December 2013, foodpanda has slowly gone on to become a household name and one of the largest e-commerce companies in Bangladesh. We want to continue on this successful path and improve the overall user experience and customer service. The new funding round will help us extend our service in new areas and new cities in Bangladesh."
foodpanda offers the most convenient way to order food via the mobile app or online. For restaurants, the online marketplace helps to increase delivery sales through online and mobile platforms and provides them with constantly evolving technology and analytics. Globally, foodpanda partners with over 45.000 restaurants in 40 countries, being market leader in 32 of those countries.