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Saudi quick commerce unicorn Ninja is considering a bid for parts of Delivery Hero's Middle East business, including HungerStation and potentially a stake in Talabat, the Financial Times reported on Sunday, adding a third suitor to a contest that already involves Uber and DoorDash.
Ninja, which was valued at $1.5 billion during a fundraise last year, will initially focus on HungerStation, which would be easier to integrate and face fewer regulatory obstacles, according to the FT. It could also partner with another group to acquire parts of Talabat. A proposal to Delivery Hero's board could come as early as this week, though the FT cautioned talks were at an early stage and Ninja could still decide against a transaction.
The HungerStation connection runs deeper than a commercial opportunity, though Ninja's leadership structure is opaque. Saud Al-Qahtani, a co-founder and former CEO of ZAD Fresh, co-founded Ninja alongside Canberk Donmez, the former chief expansion officer at Gorillas and global director of dark store operations at Delivery Hero.
Ibrahim Al-Jassim, former founder and managing director of ZAD Fresh, has appeared as the de facto public face of Ninja and has been cited as chairman of the board.
Ebrahim Al-Jassim, who founded HungerStation in Dammam, is listed as a Ninja co-founder in multiple external sources but is conspicuously absent from the company's own materials and has never been officially named by Ninja, though multiple sources have told FWDstart he is involved. A Ninja bid for HungerStation therefore would mean the platform's original founder buying it back.
Delivery Hero fully acquired HungerStation in July 2023 for $297 million when it purchased the remaining 37% stake, ending a four-year legal dispute that began when Delivery Hero terminated Al-Jassim and HungerStation's entire executive team in April 2019 and Al-Jassim filed arbitration at the DIFC-LCIA alleging the parent company had improperly intervened in HungerStation's affairs.
Some DH shareholders told the FT they would support bids close to €10 billion for the combined Middle East assets, with the lion's share being Talabat, which went public on the Dubai Financial Market in December 2024 and currently has a market value of approximately $8 billion. One person close to the situation said Delivery Hero's sum-of-parts value exceeds €17 billion
A successful Ninja bid for any Middle East assets would complicate Uber's pursuit of the whole company. Uber has built a 37% economic stake in Delivery Hero at a €12 billion valuation and is weighing a formal tender offer. DoorDash has expressed interest in the Middle East arm, and Prosus has won an EU waiver to potentially block Uber by expanding its own position.
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