(Bloomberg) — Uber Technologies Inc. has terminated its deal to acquire Delivery Hero SE’s Foodpanda business in Taiwan, after the island’s antitrust regulator rejected it in December.
Uber is required to pay a termination fee that is estimated to be about $250 million, Delivery Hero said in a statement Tuesday. In a separate statement to Bloomberg News, an Uber spokesperson reiterated the company’s disappointment about the regulator’s ruling, but said it respects the decision and will not be pursuing an appeal.
Shares of Uber extended earlier declines, falling 3.6% after the announcement.
“We remain committed to Taiwan and will continue to serve consumers, merchants and delivery partners there in innovative and competitive ways,” the spokesman said.
Uber had aimed to complete the all-cash deal, valued at $950 million, by the first half of 2025. The acquisition would have been one of Taiwan’s largest outside of the chip industry, marking a retreat for Delivery Hero from Asia.
Delivery Hero said in the statement that Taiwan remains a key part of its long-term strategy.
The online delivery industry has seen further consolidation globally as demand has failed to return to pandemic-era growth. London-based Deliveroo Plc announced on Monday it was closing its Hong Kong business after weak sales and mounting competition from Foodpanda and Keeta, a subsidiary of Chinese food delivery giant Meituan. In February, Prosus NV agreed to acquire Just Eat Takeaway.com for €4.1 billion ($4.5 billion), just months after Wonder Group Inc. bought Chicago-based Grubhub from Just Eat.
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