Delivery Hero receives $775 million funding from Naspers

Naspers, the South African media and internet giant, has invested $775 million in the Berlin based food-delivery startup Delivery Hero. The internet powerhouse acquired 13% equity stake from Delivery Hero’s parent company Rocket Internet, taking its total ownership in the food-delivery service to 26%. The food delivery space is one of the more legacy categories of e-commerce services, but in recent years it’s been heating up as a new wave of competitors have hit the market. Both Amazon and Uber have been working hard to use their own logistics networks to build out their own food delivery businesses as alternative revenue streams to their core operations.

Bob van Dijk, CEO of Naspers, commented that “Delivery Hero is already the leading online food ordering and delivery marketplace in most of the countries in which it operates and our increased investment demonstrates our confidence in the long-term prospects for the company. The food delivery sector is still underpenetrated and growing rapidly across the world. Many markets have experienced significant traction already, but we believe the potential is far greater in high-growth markets than that observed in the West”. The deal also shows how Rocket Internet continues to divest and simplify its vast network of investments around the world across a wide range of e-commerce and other online properties.