DoorDash expands European presence with £2.4B Deliveroo acquisition

DoorDash is acquiring UK-based food delivery company Deliveroo in a deal that values the company at approximately £2.4 billion.

DoorDash is a local commerce platform that connects consumers to the best of their neighbourhoods, helps local businesses of all kinds grow and innovate, and gives people fast, flexible ways to earn. Founded in 2013 and now in over 30 countries worldwide, DoorDash is a global platform dedicated to keeping commerce thriving in the communities where it operates.

The merger will serve 50 million users globally

Since its launch in 2013, DoorDash has expanded organically and inorganically to serve over 42 million monthly active users in over 30 countries, including over 22 million DashPass and Wolt+ members.

Deliveroo, founded in 2013 by Will Shu and Greg Orlowski, is a leading London-headquartered delivery service operating in nine countries, including the UK, France, and Singapore. 

In 2024, it partnered with around 176,000 restaurants and retailers and supported over 130,000 riders to serve roughly 7 million monthly active users. That year, Deliveroo reported a gross transaction value of £7.1 billion (up 8 per cent from 2023), £2.0 billion in revenue, £140 million in adjusted EBITDA, and a free cash flow of £85.5 million — marking a significant turnaround from the previous year's loss.

As of 2 May 2025, DoorDash's market capitalisation was $93.1 billion. For the fiscal year ended 31 December 2024, DoorDash reported revenue of approximately $10.7 billion.

DoorDash and Deliveroo have complementary geographic operations, and the Enlarged Group will have a global presence in over 40 countries, serving approximately 50 million active users monthly. In 2024, the two companies generated a total Gross Order Value of roughly $90 billion.

This is DoorDash's second European entry — it acquired Helsinki-based Wolt Enterprises in 2021, and this week's deal further solidifies its presence in Europe.

According to Tony Xu, CEO and Co-founder of DoorDash:

"I could not be more excited by the prospect of what DoorDash and Deliveroo will be able to accomplish together. We'll cover more than 40 countries with a combined population of more than 1 billion people, enabling us to provide more local businesses with the tools and technology they need to thrive. 

The Enlarged Group will bring together DoorDash's strong operating playbook with Deliveroo's local expertise to invest in innovation and execution at an even higher level."

Will Shu, CEO and Co-founder of Deliveroo, said:

"We are now at the beginning of a transformative new chapter. DoorDash and Deliveroo are like-minded organisations with a shared strategic vision and aligned values. 

Together, we will be even better positioned to serve consumers, merchants, riders and local communities. The Enlarged Group will have the scale to invest in product, technology and the overall consumer value proposition."

Fierce competition and rising costs have previously driven firms out of Europe 

However, Europe has been a difficult market for grocery and food delivery. 

The Financial Times reported last year that Delivery Hero, Deliveroo and Just Eat Takeaway, have collectively faced over $20 billion in operating losses since going public. These losses are attributed to high operational expenses, fierce competition, and challenges in achieving profitability.

In January last year, Berlin-based food delivery company Delivery Hero exited its stake in rival Deliveroo, as part of a "commitment to disciplined capital allocation".

Further, in April 2024, Turkish rapid grocery delivery company Getir announced its withdrawal from all remaining European markets as well as the United States, to focus exclusively on its home market of Turkey. In exiting Europe, it also closed down the European rapid delivery company Gorillas.

The decision was driven by declining demand, rising operational costs, and intense competition in the rapid delivery sector, which had surged during the COVID-19 pandemic but struggled to maintain profitability afterwards. Getir's international operations accounted for only about 7 per cent of its total revenues, making the overseas ventures unsustainable.