Ninja mulls bid for Delivery Hero’s Middle East portfolio

Local quick-commerce unicorn Ninja is reportedly weighing a bid for parts of Delivery Hero’s Middle East portfolio, including its Saudi unit HungerStation and a joint acquisition of Dubai-based Talabat, Financial Times reports, citing people familiar with the matter.

Stepping into the international scramble: Ninja entering the mix adds fresh pressure on Uber’s full takeover bid for Delivery Hero. DoorDash has also been circling the Middle East arm of the German-born delivery platform and major shareholder Prosus is considering a bigger stake, further complicating the deal landscape.

But Ninja’s founders bring history to the table. One of its founders, Ebrahim Al Jassim, helped establish HungerStation, while another, Canberk Donmez, previously held executive roles at Delivery Hero.

What sets Ninja apart: Ninja operates a network of dark stores dedicated to online retail, focusing on groceries and household essentials rather than restaurant food delivery, unlike Talabat, HungerStation, Uber, and DoorDash. Combining a restaurant network with Ninja’s existing dark store infrastructure would allow it to better utilize its logistics footprint around the clock.

But the valuation math is a bit hectic: Uber recently valued Delivery Hero at about EUR 12 bn when it upped its stake to 37% last month. Meanwhile unnamed sources argued a “sum of parts” breakup could be worth more than EUR 17 bn. Within that, the Middle East portfolio — including Talabat and HungerStation — is reportedly seen fetching around EUR 10 bn collectively by some Delivery Hero shareholders, with the group’s 80% stake in Talabat alone potentially valued at more than EUR 9 bn.

What’s next? Ninja is expected to prioritize HungerStation first due to simpler integration and fewer regulatory hurdles, with a proposal potentially coming as soon as this week, though discussions remain early and uncertain.

REMEMBER- Ninja is also preparing for a potential IPO that could raise USD 1 bn by late 2026 or early 2027, reportedly tapping Citigroup, Goldman Sachs, Riyad Capital, and UBS to advise on the move.