(Reuters) -Uber has decided to terminate its agreement to acquire Delivery Hero’s Foodpanda business in Taiwan and will pay a termination fee of around $250 million, the food delivery company said on Tuesday.
Uber said in an emailed statement that it would not appeal the decision of the Taiwan Fair Trade Commission.
Taiwan had in February blocked Uber’s $950 million purchase of Delivery Hero’s Foodpanda business on the island because of concerns it would be anti-competitive.
Taiwan’s Fair Trade Commission said in December that the buyout of Uber’s main rival, Foodpanda, would increase their combined market share to 90% on the island and could incentivize Uber to raise prices in the market.
In May 2024, Uber and Delivery Hero announced the Taiwan deal, which included a separate agreement for Uber to purchase $300 million worth of newly issued shares of the German food delivery firm.
Delivery Hero told Reuters that the termination of the Taiwan acquisition does not affect the share purchase agreement.
Food delivery platforms in Asia have largely rebounded from a post-pandemic slowdown, but the companies are grappling with intense competition and thin margins as they spend heavily on discounts to retain cost-conscious customers.
(Reporting by Chandni Shah, Pretish M J, Jaspreet Singh and Rajveer Singh Pardesi in Bengaluru; Editing by Alan Barona)
