Uber seeks Turkish blessing to buy Getir Food from Mubadala, sources say

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By Ebru Tuncay and Jonathan Spicer

ISTANBUL (Reuters) -Uber has reached agreement on key elements of a deal to acquire Turkish delivery company Getir’s food business from Emirati controlling shareholder Mubadala, and they have sought approval from Turkish authorities, two sources told Reuters.

A sale of Getir Food would mark another step in the exit from Turkey of Mubadala, Abu Dhabi’s $330 billion sovereign wealth fund, and would also expand the local market share of Uber Eats, the food delivery app of Uber Technologies.

Any final purchase deal would hinge in part on the review that has begun by Turkey’s Competition Board, according to the two people familiar with the matter, who requested anonymity to discuss confidential information.

PROPOSED SALE PRICE UNCLEAR

The proposed sale price was unclear, and the sources said a final deal may not ultimately happen. One source said the proposal was submitted to authorities “for final approval”.

Representatives from both Uber and Mubadala declined to comment about the proposed transaction and discussions with regulators. Getir referred questions on the matter to Mubadala.

The Competition Board did not immediately comment.

The submission to competition authorities and the progress in talks between Uber and Mubadala have not yet been reported. Earlier this month, Bloomberg reported the two sides had begun preliminary talks on a potential deal.

MUBADALA’S RETREAT FROM TURKISH MARKET

Last month, Mubadala sold Getir Arac, the car-rental business, to Turkey-based Tiktak.

In September, Reuters reported Mubadala was in advanced sale talks on Arac with Tiktak. It was also holding potential sale talks over the delivery business, including Getir Food, and a finance unit as it explored a full exit from the Turkish sector, the report said.

Meanwhile Uber is expanding in Turkey. In May, it said it would acquire a majority stake in Turkey-based Trendyol GO for $700 million, adding that it planned to roll out features from the Uber Eats platform in the country.

Getir and Trendyol are among Turkey’s more established food delivery companies, competing with others including heavyweight Yemeksepiti, which is owned by Germany-based Delivery Hero.

Getir grew rapidly during the COVID-19 pandemic, expanding in Western Europe and the United States, and was valued at $12 billion in 2022 following an investment round in which Mubadala took part.

It later suffered declining consumer demand and, in a dramatic turnaround, restructured and shut down its international operations. Mubadala took control of Getir assets early this year.

(Reporting by Ebru Tuncay and Jonathan Spicer; Additional reporting by Can Sezer in Istanbul and Federico Maccioni in Dubai;Editing by Conor Humphries)