After months of fighting for British meal delivery company Just Eat, its Dutch competitor Takeaway.com has won the struggle with investor Prosus. The deal is worth almost seven billion euros.
Long duel
As was already expected, Takeaway.com was able to convince enough of Just Eat’s stakeholders in order to claim victory. Last Friday, more than 80 % of them agreed to Takeaway.com’s ultimate offer, which amounts to 9.16 pounds (10.76 euros) per share.
The battle with Prosus had been dragging on for months: as early as last summer, Takeaway.com and Just Eat reached a management level agreement on a merger. However, investor Prosus interfered in the debates with a higher bid, which put the original agreement in jeopardy. In the end, the takeover battle peaked on 19 December, when both companies launched a new, ultimate bid within an hour. Takeaway.com’s bid was the highest, but it was in shares, while Prosus offered cash.
Complementary
The merger company will be called Just Eat Takeaway and will be led by the founder and CEO of Takeaway.com, Jitse Groen. The head office will be in Amsterdam, while the share will be listed on the London Stock Exchange, RTL Z writes.
Just Eat Takeaway will be the largest player in the meal delivery market outside China, with a turnover of around 1.2 billion euros. Just Eat was already very strong in Brazil, Canada, France, Mexico and the United Kingdom. Takeaway.com, for its part, has a dominant position in Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Germany, Israel, the Netherlands and Poland.
