Today in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, Deliveroo announced the date for its withdrawal from the Dutch market, and Egyptian B2B marketplace MaxAB announced plans for regional expansion following the close of a $40 million pre-Series B round.
Deliveroo to Exit Dutch Market in November
Two months after announcing its intent to pull out of the Netherlands, United Kingdom-based food delivery aggregator Deliveroo has made it official.
“Following consultation with employees and riders, Deliveroo has determined that achieving and sustaining a top-tier market position in the Netherlands would require a disproportionate level of investment with highly uncertain long-term potential returns,” the company said in a news release Wednesday (Oct. 19).
The Netherlands comprised just 1% of Deliveroo’s gross transaction value in the first half of the year, according to the release. The company’s final day operating in the country will be Nov. 30.
Riders and employees will receive “appropriate compensation packages,” the company said.
Checkout.com Introduces Fraud Detection Tool for Merchants
The U.K.-based payments service provider, Checkout.com, announced the launch of a new anti-fraud tool, Fraud Detection Pro.
The press release said that the new tool provides merchants with “sophisticated decision strategies, flexible rules and the ability to build unique customer segments for a more granular approach to assessing and routing transactions.”
The platform uses machine learning to monitor transactions for suspicious activity, meaning that the more merchants use the solution, the more effective it becomes at identifying fraud.
Klarna Adds Price Comparison Tool, Shoppable Video Content to App
Klarna has added five new shopping-oriented features to the Klarna App and website.
The new additions for shoppers include a price comparison tool, shoppable video content, a donation feature, an upgraded CO2e tracker and a platform that connects creators and retailers.
Uber Eats Bets It Can Succeed Where Fast Grocers Failed
Uber Eats announced a new grocery partnership with British supermarket chain Iceland Foods. The new platform will be called Uber East Market, allowing users to order Icelandic products through Uber Eats.
The partnership promises delivery of more than 1,000 products “in as little as 20 minutes,” including fresh foods, packaged goods and daily essentials. The supermarket chain’s staff will assemble the orders from its stores, and Uber will handle the delivery. The partnership centers on stores in densely populated neighborhoods, beginning with select locations in London.
B2B Marketplace MaxAB Raises $40M for MENAP Expansion
The Cairo-based B2B eCommerce and distribution business MaxAB announced the close of a $40m pre-series B funding round to fuel its expansion across the Middle East, North Africa and Pakistan (MENAP) region.
The MaxAB platform is an eCommerce marketplace that connects suppliers and small grocery retailers while providing embedded finance solutions to help enable trade.
With a presence in the major cities of Egypt and Casablanca in Morocco, MaxAB said in its release that it plans to expand its coverage in Morocco and venture into Saudi Arabia by the end of 2023.
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