iFood's owner will buy Just Eat to create a European food delivery "champion".
A new investment by the Dutch group Prosus focuses on technology, including AI. The goal is to make the delivery model more efficient.
By Leo Marchandon and Nqobile Dludla
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - The Dutch technology investment group Prosus, owner of iFood, has reached an agreement to buy Just Eat Takeaway.com for 4,1 billion euros to create a "European champion" in the food delivery sector.
Prosus is offering €20,30 per share of Just Eat. The offer for the entire share capital is unanimously supported by Just Eat's management and supervisory board.
The deal will mark a significant shift in the European food delivery market and will have potential global implications, as it will make Prosus the world's fourth-largest meal delivery company, behind Meituan, DoorDash, and Uber, ING analysts said.
Prosus, controlled by South African company Naspers, is also the largest shareholder of Glovo, owner of Delivery Hero, with a 28% stake, the company said in a statement on Monday.
With operations spanning more than 70 countries, Prosus also owns the leading food delivery platform in Latin America, iFood, and holds a 25% stake in India's leading food and grocery delivery platform, Swiggy, and a 4% stake in Meituan, it stated.
Prosus shares fell 7% in Amsterdam after the announcement, while Just Eat shares surged 54%. Naspers shares dropped more than 6% in Johannesburg.
"Our focus is on growth, and with growth we hope to create more jobs in many dimensions," Prosus CEO Fabricio Bloisi, a Brazilian, told reporters in a conference call, referring to Just Eat.
Delivery Hero shares rose about 5%. A German trader said some analysts were seeing the deal as a first step towards a merger between the Dutch and German food delivery groups. Bloisi said there are no plans or projects regarding Delivery Hero at the moment.
The executive added that new investment in technology, including AI, will aim to make Just Eat's delivery model more efficient. "We're not looking forward to any other major food delivery innovations or acquisitions right now," he said.
Citi analysts estimate that Prosus has approximately $5 billion to invest in further mergers and acquisitions, although they expect the short-term focus to be on executing and growing its own assets.
