Uber increases investment in Delivery Hero with $318m deal

Uber announced on Friday that it intends to buy an extra 4.5% of shares from German food delivery company Delivery Hero, purchasing from its major investor, Prosus.

Prosus declared the total gross proceeds are roughly 270 million euros, which is equivalent to $318 million.

Uber will pay 20 euros for each share, a value under Delivery Hero's closing price on Thursday after the stock rose by 7%.

Despite this, Prosus noted that this represents a 22% premium compared to the one-month average share price.

This decision follows Prosus's proposal last year to acquire the European food delivery giant Just Eat Takeaway.com for 4.1 billion euros.

The European Commission, which acts as the EU's governing body, stated that the acquisition would receive approval if Prosus substantially diminished its stake in Delivery Hero.

"Prosus remains determined to divest the necessary part of its shares in Delivery Hero within the designated period," the company explained in a press release on Friday.

A spokesperson informed CNBC that Prosus’s ownership in Delivery Hero is now approximately 21%, a decrease from about 27% when the Just Eat Takeaway.com purchase was publicized last year.

Uber initially took a share of Delivery Hero when it acquired $300 million in newly-issued shares in 2024.

Since the Prosus-Just Eat transaction last year, European regulators are reconsidering their strategies regarding mergers in the EU.

The Financial Times mentioned this week that the Commission is thinking about easing restrictions on significant mergers by factoring in "innovation, investment, and market resilience" in their assessments.

Europe’s competition commissioner Teresa Ribera told the FT in an interview that the union seeks to support "pro-competitive mergers" to help European businesses "compete significantly in global markets."

Fabricio Bloisi, the CEO of Prosus, has expressed criticism toward Europe's merger and acquisition strategies in the past.

In a January dialogue with CNBC, Bloisi emphasised that substantial mergers are vital for international competition, but Europe’s stance has often been hindering consolidation.

"We need to alter this approach to enable the creation of substantial companies in Europe," Bloisi conveyed to CNBC.