Zomato ‘Eats’ Into Uber Food Delivery

Food delivery and restaurant discovery platform Zomato acquired Uber Eats app in India on Tuesday.

Following the acquisition, Uber Eats will discontinue operations and direct restaurants, delivery partners, and users to the Zomato platform.

The acquisition is as an all-stock deal that will give Uber 9.99% stake in Zomato.

Zomato had recently raised $150 million in funding from existing investor Ant Financial, an Alibaba affiliate, at a $3 billion valuation.

“We are proud to have pioneered restaurant discovery and to have created a leading food delivery business across more than 500 cities in India. This acquisition significantly strengthens our position in the category,” Zomato CEO Deepinder Goyal said.

Uber Eats had entered India in 2017 and covered 41 cities and about 26,000 restaurants.

Uber Eats had reportedly projected an operating loss of ₹2,197 crore in its food delivery business for the five months through December 2019.

The India business accounted for just 3 per cent of Uber Eats gross bookings.

“India remains an exceptionally important market to Uber and we will continue to invest in growing our Local Rides business, which is already the clear category leader. We have been very impressed by Zomato’s ability to grow rapidly in a capital-efficient manner and we wish them continued success,” Dara Khosrowshahi, CEO of Uber India, said.