Amazon-backed food delivery startup Deliveroo hammered, shares plunged 31% in London IPO debut
Nickie Louise
Posted On March 31, 2021
The much-anticipated IPO of Deliveroo is finally here. Shares of Amazon-backed food delivery startup plunged by as much as 30% in early trading Wednesday. The company priced its shares at £3.90 ($5.36) but they were down to £2.73 shortly after trading commenced.
The unicorn startup quickly lost more than £2 billion ($2.8 billion) off its market cap as shares plunged. It’s a stark contrast to the debut of DoorDash, which IPO’d in the US back in December. Its shares soared more than 86% at the open.
The IPO has been hit by concerns over Deliveroo’s treatment of its drivers, the company’s governance, and valuation.
The London, England-based Deliveroo was founded in 2013 by Will Shu and Greg Orlowski. The startup makes money by charging restaurants a commission fee, as well as by charging customers a fee per order. It currently operates in two hundred cities.
Deliveroo operates in over 500 towns and cities across 14 markets, including Australia, Belgium, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Italy, Ireland, Netherlands, Singapore, Spain, Taiwan, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and the United Kingdom. The Proskauer team was led by London private equity partner Richard Bull, with associates Andrew Houghton and Darpit Mehta supporting him throughout the transaction.
The startup recently raised $180 million in fresh funding giving it a $7 billion valuation. Alongside Amazon, Deliveroo is also backed by Durable Capital Partners, Fidelity, T. Rowe Price, General Catalyst, Index Ventures, and Accel.
