Uber announced on Monday that it will purchase Postmates for $2.65 billion in stock, according to CNBC.
In a press release regarding the deal, Uber acknowledged that both companies offer delivery services, but said that the acquisition is a perfect match because Postmates is "highly complementary to Uber Eats, with differentiated geographic focus areas and customer demographics, and Postmates’ strong relationships with small- and medium-sized restaurants, particularly local favorites that draw customers to the Postmates brand."
Because of this, Uber will continue to operate Postmates on its own separate app for consumers once the deal goes through, but said that it will now be “supported by a more efficient, combined merchant and delivery network.” They touted the benefits for restaurants and delivery workers alike, including increasing the ability to batch orders from both platforms.
Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said in a statement:
Uber and Postmates have long shared a belief that platforms like ours can power much more than just food delivery—they can be a hugely important part of local commerce and communities, all the more important during crises like COVID-19. As more people and more restaurants have come to use our services, Q2 bookings on Uber Eats are up more than 100 percent year on year. We’re thrilled to welcome Postmates to the Uber family as we innovate together to deliver better experiences for consumers, delivery people, and merchants across the country.
The deal comes just a few weeks after Uber was previously reported to be in talks to buy Grubhub. Grubhub was ultimately sold to JustEatTakeaway, another delivery company in Europe, last month. CNBC pointed out that Uber's acquisition of Postmates makes sense, saying that the company is looking to put more of an emphasis on its delivery services as rides are down amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
