Naspers buys half of Rocket's stake in Delivery Hero for $775 million
The deal is the latest high-stakes bet on online food delivery platforms by Naspers, which already runs similar sites in Brazil, Mexico, South Africa and in May paid $80 million to buy into India’s Swiggy.
The investment in loss-making Delivery Hero comes as some of Naspers’ investors are losing patience with losses from more than a dozen e-commerce platforms that include Letgo and OLX - the biggest classified sites in India and Brazil.
Chief executive Oliver Samwer said the stake sale was a vindication of Rocket’s investment strategy.
Naspers first took a stake in Delivery Hero in May, a month before the Berlin-based takeaway firm went public.
On Thursday, it lifted its stake to 23.6 percent, making it the biggest shareholder in one of Europe’s largest internet startups. ■