Forbes: Yandex agreed with Uber to buy out its stake in a joint venture

“Yandex» agreed to buy out Uber’s 29% stake in the MLU BV joint venture, informed Forbes, citing a source close to the negotiations and a source in the investment community. RBC citing a source close to the deal, clarifiedthat the amount of the ransom will be approximately $925 million.

The source of RBC said that in the near future Yandex will submit documents for consideration of the terms of the transaction to the government commission.

When Yandex bought out in August 2021 for $ 1 billion from Uber a stake in Yandex.Food, Lavka, Delivery and a division specializing in drones, the parties reported that Yandex also has the right to buy out the remaining shares partner for an amount of $ 1.8-2 billion until September 2023. But on March 1, 2022, The New York Times, citing a statement from an American company informedthat Uber plans to accelerate the sale of its stake in the joint venture with Yandex and reduce its presence on the board of directors – Uber reported that three Uber executives will be removed from it, and their places will be taken by representatives who will be responsible for the withdrawal of investments. One of Forbes’ sources clarified that the acceleration of the sale is contrary to the terms of the option, which is why the companies had to negotiate a buyout price, which was adjusted due to the decrease in the value of assets under the influence of a special operation.

Yandex.Taxi and Uber merged passenger transportation and food delivery from restaurants in Russia and several CIS countries in 2018. The combined company MLU BV operates an online ride booking service under the Yandex.Taxi, Uber and Yango brands. At the start, Uber’s investment in the joint venture amounted to $225 million, Yandex — $100 million. At the time of its creation, its value was estimated at $3.8 billion.

Subsequently, MLU BV expanded its areas of activity: in particular, it created a division for the development of unmanned vehicles and rovers, the Lavka food delivery service and the Yandex.Drive carsharing service. The partners planned to hold an initial public offering of Yandex.Taxi shares, but in May 2020 these plans were abandoned amid a pandemic, which slowed down the growth in the number of trips.

Initially, Yandex received 59.3% of the shares in the joint venture, Uber – 36.9%, another 3.8% were reserved for options for employees of the new structure. Subsequently, Yandex increased its stake in the joint venture. In August last year, it was reported that the Russian Internet giant would buy a 4.5% stake and increase its stake to 71% (including shares reserved for the options program).