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Ninja, the Saudi quick-commerce company, is working with Goldman Sachs, Citigroup, UBS and Riyad Capital as advisers on a potential acquisition of some of Delivery Hero's assets in Saudi Arabia and the UAE, according to a source who spoke to Asharq Business on condition of anonymity.
UBS and Citi declined to comment to Asharq, while Ninja and the other banks did not respond to requests for comment.
The advisory line-up puts structure behind a bid first reported by Bloomberg and the FT earlier this month. Ninja has submitted an indicative offer for HungerStation in Saudi Arabia and has expressed interest in parts of DFM-listed Talabat should they become available for sale, the FT reported, with a proposal to Delivery Hero's board possible imminently, though talks remain at an early stage.
The contest carries a personal dimension with Ninja having been founded in 2022 by Ebrahim Al-Jassim, the entrepreneur who built HungerStation before a 2019 fallout with Delivery Hero saw him and the platform's executive team terminated, triggering an arbitration filing at the DIFC-LCIA. Delivery Hero fully acquired HungerStation in 2023 for $297 million, buying out the remaining 37% stake. A successful Ninja bid would, in effect, return the business to its founder.
Ninja crossed into unicorn territory last year, raising around $250 million at a $1.5 billion valuation in a round led by Riyad Capital, now one of its advisers, and operates across Saudi, Bahrain, Qatar and Kuwait with a 2027 public listing reportedly in view.
The move complicates Uber's pursuit of Delivery Hero. The US company has become its dominant shareholder, lifting its stake to 36.83% after buying out activist investor Aspex Management, and has tabled a full takeover offer that values the group at around €10 billion ($11.6 billion), though a major shareholder rebuffed a higher €38-a-share approach and Uber's board has weighed raising its bid.
DoorDash has separately held exploratory talks with Delivery Hero shareholders without buying equity. Some shareholders have signalled they would back bids approaching €10 billion for HungerStation and Talabat combined, a carve-up of the region's crown jewels that cuts against Uber's preference to buy the whole company.
HungerStation sits outside the Talabat listed perimeter, owned 100% directly through the Delivery Hero structure, which is part of why Ninja is understood to be prioritising it: easier to integrate, and fewer regulatory hurdles than a move on the DFM-listed Talabat.
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