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Prosus is exploring ways to block or extract better terms from Uber's pursuit of Delivery Hero after the European Commission granted the Dutch investment group a waiver extending the deadline by which it must sell down its stake, the Financial Times reported on Monday.
Prosus, which was forced to forfeit its voting rights and reduce its Delivery Hero holding to single digits by August 2026 as a condition of its €4.1 billion Just Eat Takeaway acquisition, has been speaking to other Delivery Hero shareholders about the price at which they would sell their stakes, according to the FT.
The company is now considering using the waiver to temporarily increase its shareholding, either to thwart Uber's takeover or to strengthen its bargaining position in any deal, and could also vote against an Uber bid. Prosus had previously sold a 4.5% stake to Uber in April for €270 million at €20 per share.
The development introduces a new obstacle for Uber, which has built a 37% economic stake in Delivery Hero at a €12 billion valuation after acquiring activist Aspex Management's entire 14.6% holding and having its initial €33-per-share bid rebuffed last month.
A person familiar with Uber's thinking told the FT last week that a decision on whether to launch a formal tender offer was "probably weeks away." Delivery Hero's shares have risen more than 75% in the past month on takeover speculation.
Prosus CEO Fabricio Bloisi has previously criticised European regulators for opening the door to an American takeover of a European delivery company, and Jefferies head of European internet research Giles Thorne told the FT the Brussels waiver signals that "tech sovereignty in the EU looks alive and well."
For Talabat and HungerStation, Delivery Hero's Gulf assets that FWDstart has reported on throughout this saga, a Prosus intervention adds a third potential outcome alongside an Uber takeover or a DoorDash carve-out: Delivery Hero remains European-owned with Prosus reasserting control.
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