Deliveroo deal shows UK still can’t hang on to big firms

The takeover of Deliveroo by its US counterpart DoorDash is an illuminating example of the differing fortunes and attractions of US and UK stock markets.

DoorDash’s offer for Deliveroo values the business at £2.9bn and will create a company with operations in more than 40 countries.

While both are similar companies, their fortunes have dramatically diverged over the past few years.

Both started out as food delivery services offering customers convenient and speedy access to their favourite restaurants and offering restaurants the ability to more fully utilise the capacity of their kitchens.

Both extended their offerings to include other convenience shopping items – like nappies, flowers and pet food.

Both raised money by selling shares to the public in an initial public offering (IPO) around the same time – Deliveroo on the London stock market, DoorDash on the New York Stock Exchange.

But when Deliveroo listed its shares in London, DoorDash was worth five times as much as its UK counterpart. Four years later DoorDash was worth 35 times as much.