Food delivery riders in Amsterdam. Photo: Depositphotos.com
Dutch meal delivery firm Just Eat Takeaway has written off some €3 billion on its purchase of US delivery firm GrubHub, plunging the company deep into the red.
Just Eat Takeaway bought Grubhub last year for €6.4 billion but the takeover has not been a happy one and the US company has been struggling to compete against Uber Eats and Doordash. Shareholders have also called on Just Eat Takeawy to sell the company.
Just Eat Takeaway, which earlier took over Delivery Hero in Germany for €930 million and Just Eat in Britain for €7 billion, is one of the biggest meal delivery companies in the world.
The write-off led Just Eat Takeaway to make a loss of €3.48 billion in the first half of the year, while orders were down 7% worldwide. Delivery firms grew enormously during the height of the coronavirus restrictions and have been struggling to catch up since.
Just Eat Takeaway says its Dutch and German operations are profitable but investors still have doubts. The company’s share price has fallen from €100 two years ago to €19 at Wednesday’s close.
The company also said on Wednesday that its operational director Jörg Gerbig, who had been suspended in May after allegations were made against him, is now free to return to his desk.
The company’s CEO and founder Jitse Groen would not give any more information. ‘If he has been found not to be guilty, then he is not guilty,’ Groen said. His reappointment will shortly be put to shareholders.
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Source: Dutch News
