Deliveroo confirms float intentions

It follows reports from late last year that the delivery service was intending to launch an IPO, which last week it confirmed would be on the London Stock Exchange (LSE).

In a letter published on the LSE, Will Shu, founder and chief executive of Deliveroo, said the business have grown bigger than he thought possible, and was now taking the next big step in its journey “allowing everyone to have a share in our future”.

“That’s why we are planning to take Deliveroo public here in London, the city where it all started - and we plan to offer our customers across the UK the chance to own a part of the business,” he said.

“We are proud to be enabling our customers to participate in a future float and have the chance to buy shares.”

The Offer would comprise new shares, to be issued by the company and existing shares, to be sold to certain existing shareholders.

Its float plans will be based on a new time-limited ‘dual class’ listing structure which will involve two different classes of shares with different voting rights, designed to enable founders to retain greater control after companies go public.

The Class A shares would be offered in the IPO, while the Class B shares would be, on admission, held solely by Shu, and would not be admitted to listing or to trading on any stock exchange.

The structure will last for three years from IPO. On the third anniversary of an IPO, the Class B Shares would automatically convert into Class A Shares.

Deliveroo also plans to launch a £50m five-year ‘community fund’ in order to help support thousands of its partner restaurants, and grocers, in order to help rebuild their businesses after the pandemic.

The fund will also be used to make individual payments of up to £10,000 to its “longest and hardest working riders”, and to provide meals to vulnerable groups.

The fund would be put it place after any potential future IPO, it said.