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Uber has agreed to acquire German food-delivery group Delivery Hero for $14.8 billion, a deal that would bring Glovo, Kenya's most-used food and grocery delivery app, under the same ownership as Uber Eats. For Kenyan consumers, restaurants, and gig riders, the practical question is not the price tag in Berlin. It is what happens to competition in Nairobi once one company controls two of the country's three leading delivery platforms.
What Was Announced
Uber and Delivery Hero signed a business combination agreement on July 16, 2026, under which Uber will pay Delivery Hero shareholders €41.50 in cash per share. That values Delivery Hero at roughly $14.8 billion, or about Sh1.95 trillion. Uber already held a direct stake of about 25 percent in Delivery Hero going into the deal, built up over several months of prior purchases.
The acquisition covers Delivery Hero's operations in 50 markets, including Kenya, Nigeria, Uganda, Morocco, Tunisia, and Côte d'Ivoire, alongside brands such as foodpanda in Asia, talabat in the Gulf, HungerStation in Saudi Arabia, PedidosYa in Latin America, and Baedal Minjok in South Korea. Uber Technologies Inc. has agreed to buy Delivery Hero SE in a deal that values the German food-delivery company at $14.8 billion and expands the US firm's global operations. Combined, the merged business would expand to 99 markets with a combined gross booking volume of about $236 billion based on 2025 figures.
In a separate transaction structured to ease antitrust concerns in Europe, New York investment firm SSW Partners will buy Delivery Hero's operations in 14 markets where Uber and Delivery Hero overlap most directly, including Glovo's businesses in Spain, Portugal, Poland, Romania, and Moldova, for roughly €1.4 billion. Kenya was not included in that carve-out, meaning Glovo Kenya stays with Uber.
Delivery Hero's management and supervisory boards have unanimously endorsed the offer. The deal is expected to close in the second half of 2027, pending shareholder votes and regulatory clearance across the dozens of jurisdictions involved.
Why Kenya Is a Bigger Deal Than It Looks
Glovo is not a minor asset changing hands as part of a large global transaction. It is the dominant player in Kenya's online food and grocery delivery market. A Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) market study found Glovo's share of food delivery at 33% and its share of grocery delivery at 46%, well ahead of Uber Eats, Jumia Food, and Bolt Food.
The gap has since widened. Glovo's active Kenyan users grew from 208,000 to 314,000 in early 2025, while Uber Eats' weekly downloads fell from 21,800 to 1,300 over the same stretch. Jumia Food exited the Kenyan market entirely, leaving Glovo, Uber Eats, and Bolt Food as the three remaining large platforms. If the acquisition closes as structured, Uber would own two of those three, with Bolt Food as the only independent competitor left standing.
Kenya's Regulators Get a Say Before the Deal Can Close
This is not a transaction Kenyan authorities will simply read about after the fact. Kenya's mandatory merger notification rules, introduced this year, require the Competition Authority of Kenya to approve the deal before it can be completed. The CAK has already shown a willingness to intervene in this sector: in 2024 it ordered both Glovo and Uber Eats to open physical offices in Kenya after finding that complaint resolution was slow because both platforms were run entirely from abroad.
A second regulatory layer is arriving at almost the same moment. The Communications Authority of Kenya has also just created a dedicated Courier Hailing Service Provider license, taking effect July 29, which will apply to both platforms and gives regulators another point of oversight during the review.
Three groups have a direct stake in how that review goes. Restaurants and merchants are watching commission rates, since negotiating with one dominant platform is different from playing two competitors off each other. Riders, most of whom work without formal employment protections, want assurance the merger will not mean fewer jobs or worse terms. Consumers, who have benefited from Glovo and Uber Eats competing on price and service, could see that pressure ease if the combined company faces a weaker rival in Bolt Food.
What Changes for Kenyan Users, and What Doesn't, Right Away
For now, nothing changes on the ground. Glovo and Uber Eats will continue operating as separate apps, with separate riders and separate restaurant agreements, until the deal actually closes. That is not expected before the second half of 2027, which gives the CAK, businesses, and riders more than a year to scrutinize the merger before it becomes final.
The longer-term outcome is harder to call and depends on factors still in motion. A less competitive market could mean higher fees for restaurants, thinner margins for riders, or slower improvements in service for customers. It could just as easily mean more investment and better technology if Uber chooses to pour resources into the merged Kenyan business, similar to the €2 billion in German investment it has already pledged to protect its position in Delivery Hero's home market.
Much of that will hinge on two things: whether Bolt Food can hold its ground as the last major independent competitor, and what conditions, if any, the Competition Authority of Kenya attaches before it lets the deal through. Kenyan regulators have already forced both companies to become more locally accountable once. This merger is likely to test how far they are willing to go the second time.
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