Led · Equity · Oct 2013

Easy Taxi is a taxi-calling app launched in 2011 that connects riders with a large base of drivers in emerging markets. The app is available in 160 cities across 30 countries, concentrated in Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. Over the past year the company added more than 150,000 drivers, bringing its total to about 185,000. Easy Taxi faces competition from players such as Uber and Careem in the Middle East and Africa and GrabTaxi and Uber in Southeast Asia. Management says the new funding will be used to continue growth in existing markets, advance technology, scale operations and improve service to more audiences and geographies. Rocket Internet is pursuing this expansion to establish Easy Taxi’s presence in emerging markets and defend against local competitors. Easy Taxi is a mobile taxi‑hailing app launched by Rocket Internet in 2011 and available on iOS, Android and BlackBerry. The company reports about 2 million downloads and over 60,000 drivers across 15 markets in Latin America, Africa and Asia. It is pursuing expansion into the Middle East and North Africa, beginning a rollout in Saudi Arabia. To support that regional push, iMENA Holding has invested $7 million into the rollout. Previously Easy Taxi received $10 million from Africa Internet Holding in July and $15 million in June through Latin American Internet Holding. Rocket Internet is partnering on the rollout and is using its broader capital and infrastructure strategy to secure footholds in emerging markets. Competition in MENA is described as relatively light, with entrants such as Uber and Careem having launched in Dubai but not yet rolled out to other cities. Easy Taxi offers a mobile app-based service that matches passengers with taxi drivers and lets users and drivers track each other on in-app maps. The app relies on existing licensed taxi fleets rather than building proprietary driver networks, differentiating it from services like Uber. Launched in Brazil in 2011, Easy Taxi now operates in Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo and other Brazilian cities, plus Salvador, Lima and Venezuela, with outposts in Seoul and Kuala Lumpur and plans for Manila, Hong Kong and Bangkok. The company reports more than 30,000 taxi drivers in its network and almost 1,000,000 app downloads, but does not disclose active-user counts or turnover. Easy Taxi says it will use the new funding to continue building operations in Latin America and to pursue global expansion. It also partners with Payleven to enable mobile payments for drivers and to potentially integrate with Rocket Internet’s broader e-commerce and delivery holdings.

Led · Equity · Sep 2013

Foodpanda operates an online food delivery marketplace that covers 580 cities across 40 countries on five continents and lists over 60,000 restaurants. Incubated by Rocket Internet, the company initially focused on Asia and other emerging markets and has expanded through an acquisition binge, including a stake in Delivery Hero and nine other food‑delivery startups. It says the latest capital will be used to further expand its delivery activities and improve customer experience. The business is capital intensive and Rocket Internet’s emerging‑market playbooks suggest high burn as it builds logistics, hires teams and subsidizes customer growth. The article notes revenue is not currently pouring in, though investors see long‑term potential as smartphone adoption grows in those markets. Foodpanda was founded in 2012 and is based in Berlin. Foodpanda is a Rocket Internet-backed meal delivery service that enables customers to order food via mobile app or online. The company operates an online marketplace that helps restaurants increase delivery sales and provides them with technology and analytics. Foodpanda currently partners with over 45,000 restaurants and is active in 40 countries, expanding rapidly especially in southeast Asia. After acquiring key competitors this year across Asia, the Middle East, Eastern Europe, Mexico, Russia, Brazil and India, the company plans to further invest in products and technology. It also intends to continue focusing on customer service and loyalty and integrated its service with WeChat last year to attract a bigger user base. Financially, Foodpanda has raised more than $200 million since its 2012 launch and recently secured an additional $110 million funding round. FoodPanda operates an online marketplace and mobile app that lets customers order food for delivery and provides analytics and other information to restaurant partners. The company runs multiple brands including hellofood and, after a recent acquisition, Russia’s Delivery Club. FoodPanda is available in 40 countries with a focus on Southeast Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and Africa. The service is part of Rocket Internet’s strategy of replicating proven e-commerce models in emerging markets. Management says the new funding will be invested in growth by partnering with more restaurants in more cities and improving customer service. The company has now raised a total of $108 million. foodpanda is a Rocket Internet‑incubated online food delivery marketplace that operates via a website and mobile apps for iOS and Android. Launched in 2012, the service partners with about 22,000 restaurants. The company aims to expand its delivery marketplace into over 40 markets by the end of Q1 2014, with imminent launches in Croatia, Bulgaria, Serbia, Slovenia, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Tanzania, and Uganda. foodpanda focuses on emerging markets across Eastern Europe, Asia, Latin America and parts of Africa to build a large customer‑service and logistics network. It has developed a payments system tailored for countries with low credit‑card penetration and plans to leverage that infrastructure across other Rocket Internet verticals. Competitors cited include Delivery Hero and Just‑Eat. foodpanda operates an online marketplace and mobile app that lets consumers order takeout and provides restaurants with online and mobile tools to increase sales. The company is led by global managing director Ralf Wenzel and was incubated by Rocket Internet. It is active in 27 countries, including India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Morocco, Senegal, Nigeria, Russia, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Peru, Hungary, Venezuela, Poland, Ukraine, Romania and Saudi Arabia. foodpanda intends to use the new capital to expand its take-out ordering service in the region beyond Saudi Arabia. The company recently raised $8M in this financing and had previously raised $20M from Investment AB Kinnevik and Phenomen Ventures, among others. Headquarters are in Berlin, Germany.

Led · Equity · Sep 2013

Hellofood is an online take‑out ordering service currently operating locally in Saudi Arabia. Rocket Internet announced it has brought iMENA Holdings on as a partner and investor in Hellofood’s Middle Eastern operation. iMENA is investing $8 million as a strategic investment and partnership, with the capital earmarked to expand the service beyond Saudi Arabia across the region. iMENA’s mission to build online businesses based on proven models was noted as complementary to Rocket’s approach, and both firms say the tie-up will accelerate regional growth. Earlier in the year the broader Foodpanda/Hellofood business raised more than $20M from investors including Investment AB Kinnevik and Phenomen Ventures. The company is pushing to scale rapidly to compete with better‑funded rivals in the online delivery market.