Uber has terminated its $950 million bid for Delivery Hero’s Foodpanda business in Taiwan, the food delivery company said on Tuesday, owing to regulatory hurdles.
Taiwan had in December blocked the deal on anti-competitive concerns. Its Fair Trade Commission argued the buyout of Uber’s main rival, Foodpanda, would increase the combined market share to 90 per cent on the island and could incentivize Uber to raise prices.
Uber said it would not appeal against the decision of Taiwan’s FTC. The U.S. ride-hailing firm will have to pay a deal termination fee of around $250 million.
Both the companies announced the deal in May last year, which included a separate agreement for Uber to buy $300 million worth of newly issued shares of the German food delivery firm.
The termination of the acquisition would not affect the share-purchase agreement, Delivery Hero told Reuters. Food delivery platforms in Asia have rebounded from a post-pandemic slowdown, but the companies are grappling with intense competition and thin margins as they spend heavily on discounts to retain cost-conscious customers.
Uber, which owns food delivery arm Uber Eats, has been looking to tap into the growing quick-commerce business of Foodpanda to expand its reach.
