Yahoo Finance Amazon leads £450m investment in Deliveroo
Amazon is leading a £450m investment in Deliveroo, taking the total money the food app has raised to £1.2bn.
Deliveroo announced on Friday that Amazon will join T. Rowe Price, Fidelity Management, and Greenoaks in its latest round of fundraising.
Although each exact figure was not given, Amazon is the biggest investor in the round.
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This comes after the online giant ended its own London-based takeaway delivery service Amazon Restaurants UK in December after two years of operation, amid competition from Just Eat and other rivals.
Deliveroo said it will use the money to grow the tech team at its London headquarters, hire more riders, and experiment with “delivery-only” kitchens to expand the outreach of its restaurant partners.
“This new investment will help Deliveroo grow; offer customers even more choice, tailored to their personal tastes; offer restaurants greater opportunities to grow and expands their business; and create more flexible, well-paid work for riders,” Will Shu, CEO of Deliveroo, said.
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"This is great news for the tech and restaurant sectors, and it will help to create jobs in all of the countries in which we operate."
Deliveroo was last valued at just over $2bn in September 2017. The new investment would put it at about $4bn.
Amazon has reportedly expressed interest in buying Deliveroo in the past, as has transportation firm Uber, which launched its delivery service Uber Eats in the UK in 2016.
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"We're impressed with Deliveroo's approach and their dedication to providing customers with an ever-increasing selection of great restaurants, along with convenient delivery options,” Doug Gurr, Amazon UK country manager, said.
"Will and his team have built an innovative technology and service, and we're excited to see what they do next."
