Getir, one of the world’s biggest food delivery platforms, is in talks over a radical restructuring just two years after being valued at almost $12 billion (£9.6 billion).
Sky News understands that Getir, which was founded in Turkey and now operates in five markets including the UK, is examining a range of options as part of negotiations with its main investors.
Sources said this weekend that this could involve a break-up of the fast delivery group, an exit from several of its remaining markets or some form of emergency restructuring mechanism.
A source close to the company denied that any form of insolvency process was being considered, stating that if it decided to leave a country it would do so “in an orderly manner”.
Another source added that the next few days were “make or break” for the company, with important decisions about Getir’s future expected to be made within the next fortnight.
A drastic restructuring could put thousands of jobs at risk in the markets it operates in, although further details on the options under consideration were unclear this weekend.
AlixPartners, the restructuring company, is advising on the situation at Getir.
Talk of the crisis highlights falling valuations of technology companies, once hailed as the new titans of major economies.
At one point, Getir was valued more by private investors than Marks & Spencer and J Sainsbury combined.
Getir is backed by prominent investors including Mubadala, the sovereign wealth fund of Abu Dhabi, Sequoia Capital and Tiger Global.
The company was one of the hottest start-ups in the world coronavirus pandemic, when financiers rushed to invest billions of dollars in companies they believed would benefit from structural changes in the economy.
Getir, which means “to bring” in Turkish, was valued at $11.8 billion (£9.5 billion) when it raised more than $750 million (£603 million) in a funding round at the start of 2022.
In autumn last year, when it secured a further $500 million (£401 million) from existing backers, it was worth just $2.5 billion (£2 billion).
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Over the past year, a number of “unicorn” companies have been forced to accept huge valuation discounts in order to secure the financing they need to survive.
Last September, Getir also announced a sharp cut in the size of its workforce, eliminating around 2,500 jobs, or around 10% of its global employee base.
It also left Italy, Portugal and Spain.
Founded in 2015, Getir was one of a series of companies that promised urban consumers fast delivery of groceries and other essentials.
During the COVID-19 crisis, the industry saw sales explode, with emerging trends such as working from home fueling investor confidence that the boom was sustainable.
However, many of its rivals have already gone bankrupt, while others have been swallowed up as part of a desperate wave of consolidation.
Getir itself purchased Gorillas in a $1.2 billion stock-based deal that closed in December 2022.
“Our business is very agile and fast,” a Getir spokeswoman said on Saturday.
“Getir primarily does not comment on rumors or internal matters, however, whenever decisions are made, we will announce them as we have done in the past.”
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