Saudi food delivery firm Jahez to buy Chefz in $173 mln cash, stock deal

Saudi food delivery firm Jahez agreed to acquire The Chefz in a cash and stock deal, almost a year after Delivery Hero SE’s attempt to buy the firm was thwarted by the local competition watchdog.

Jahez International Co. for Information Systems Technology, as the firm is formally known, will buy The Chefz for an equity valuation of $173 million (650 million riyals), according to a statement. It will consist of 325 million riyals in cash and issuance of new shares to the sellers of The Chefz valued at the same amount.

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The Chefz, which started out as an app that specialized in home delivery for fine dining restaurants before expanding its services, competes against Delivery Hero’s Hungerstation and Jahez. Saudi Arabia’s General Authority for Competition last year rejected Delivery Hero’s takeover offer for The Chefz, without disclosing any details or the reasons for its decision.

Jahez is the biggest locally owned food delivery group in Saudi Arabia. The firm made its trading debut in January after pricing its initial public offering at the top end of a planned range.

Jahez said in addition to cash and shares, the founding members of The Chefz will receive an earn-out amount of 100 million riyals in cash, subject to performance-related targets being attained over an earn-out period. The proposed transaction is likely to close in the first quarter of next year.

HSBC Holdings Plc is the financial adviser for Jahez, while EFG Hermes is the adviser for The Chefz.

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