EU: Dutch Takeaway.com gets US$10B for London’s Just Eat takeover

Amsterdam-based Takeaway.com will merge with London’s Just Eat to create one of the biggest companies in the online food delivery sector.

Combined, the companies will lead worldwide food delivery markets, including the United Kingdom, Germany, the Netherlands, and Canada, Reuters reported on Monday, July 29.

The deal gives Just Eat shareholders 0.09744 in Takeaway.com shares for each Just Eat share, giving them about 52.2% of the combined group, the news outlet stated.

Takeaway.com chief executive Jitse Groen will serve as the combined group’s CEO while Just Eat chairman Mike Evans will be the chair. The new company will be incorporated and headquartered in Amsterdam.

The merger is a triumph for hedge fund investor Cat Rock Capital, which is invested in both companies and has asked for a deal.

Just Eat has undergone a number of changes in recent months, including the acquisition of restaurant tech companies City Pantry, Flyt and Practi. After merging its customer and restaurant operation teams earlier this month, Just Eat went through a round of layoffs in the UK and Ireland to get rid of redundancies.

Takeaway acquired Germany’s Delivery Hero earlier this year. Delivery Hero went public in 2017 with a listing valued at US$4.5 billion. The rise of food delivery services has a new factor gaining significance — so-called ghost kitchens designed to handle only take-out orders.

Berlin-based Keatz operates “ghost” or “cloud” kitchens, making delivery-only food for restaurants. SoftBank’s Vision Fund is in on these new concepts and recently invested US$357 million in Zume Pizza which is developing robotic technology that can prepare and cook pizzas while en route to delivery. The online food market will hit US$365 billion globally in 2030, up from about US$35 billion last year, and these delivery-only kitchens are expected to play a part in that growth.