Taiwan blocks Uber’s $950m Foodpanda acquisition

Taiwan has officially rejected Uber Technologies Inc.’s proposed $950-million acquisition of Delivery Hero SE’s Foodpanda local business, according to the official Central News Agency.

The decision, made by Taiwan’s Fair Trade Commission (FTC) on Wednesday, stems from concerns about potential anti-competitive effects, the state-backed news agency reported. The source of this information was not disclosed.

Uber had planned to finalise the all-cash acquisition by mid-2025, making it one of Taiwan’s biggest deals outside the chip industry and signalling Delivery Hero’s exit from Asia.

The FTC, which did not provide a comment before a 5 pm briefing in Taipei, had previously expressed worries about the agreement.

The merger of UberEats and Foodpanda, both holding significant market shares, is expected to increase market concentration, as stated. Additional economic analysis is required to assess the overall benefits and drawbacks of the reduced competition.

Both Uber and Delivery Hero, who could not be immediately reached for comment, had previously emphasised that the takeover was contingent upon receiving regulatory approval.

Attribution: Bloomberg

Subediting: M. S. Salama