Getir, the grocery app that has expanded at breakneck speed to become one of the world’s most valuable fast delivery platforms, is considering a series of asset sales as part of decisive restructuring talks.
Sky News understands that Getir, which was founded in Turkey and has a large presence in Britain, is examining possible divestitures, including FreshDirect, a US-based online grocer that it only acquired late last year.
The company, which gained brand recognition by sponsoring Tottenham Hotspur’s training kit in a three-year deal, is also said to be considering the sale of BiTaksi, a ride-hailing service in Turkey.
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City sources said Mubadala, the Abu Dhabi state-backed investor that is a minority shareholder in Getir, was interested in pursuing a series of asset sales.
Mubadala is being advised on a possible restructuring of Getir by AlixPartners, the sources added, while cautioning that it was not certain that the divestitures would take place.
News about possible moves arrives days later Sky News revealed that Getir was in talks over a radical restructuring just two years after it was valued at almost $12 billion (£9.6 billion).
The company has already exited several countries, including Italy and Spain, in a bid to reduce losses – and now operates in five markets, including the UK and Turkey.
A source close to the company denied over the weekend that any form of insolvency proceedings were being considered, saying that if it decided to leave a country it would do so “in an orderly manner”.
A drastic restructuring could put thousands of jobs at risk in the markets where it operates.
The negotiations highlight 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 announced on a London bus. photo from iStock archive
Getir is backed by prominent investors including Mubadala, Sequoia Capital and Tiger Global.
The company was one of the most dynamic start-ups of the pandemic, as financiers rushed to invest billions of dollars in businesses they believed would benefit from structural changes in the economy.
Getir, which means “to bring” in Turkish, was valued at $11.8 billion when it raised more than $750 million in a funding round in early 2022.
Its rating has since fallen.
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.
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 crisis, the industry saw sales explode, with emerging trends such as working from home fueling investor confidence that the boom was sustainable.
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.
“Getir primarily does not comment on rumors,” a spokeswoman said on Tuesday.
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