The Spanish on-demand delivery startup Glovo sent its delivery representatives a message on 24 January saying: "The deadline for the delivery of cash surpluses in your possession is Thursday, 30 January."

 

Three days earlier, Glovo announced that "it is exiting four markets including Egypt" as part of a plan to push for profitability in 2021.

 

"This has been a very tough decision to take, but our strategy has always been to focus on markets where we can grow and establish ourselves among the top two delivery players while providing a first-class user experience and value for our Glovers, customers and partners," it added.

 

In addition to Egypt, the on-demand delivery startup shut down its services in Turkey, Puerto Rico and Uruguay.

 

According to the statement, Oscar Pierre, the co-founder and CEO of Glovo, said: “Leaving these four markets will help us to further strengthen our leadership position in Southwest and eastern Europe, Latin America, and other African markets, and reach our profitability targets by early 2021."

 

Glovo, which was founded in 2015 and operates in 28 countries, entered Egypt in 2018. Its activities were limited to the capital Cairo and Alexandria, the second-largest city.

 

The move comes a month after Glovo announced that it has raised $166.3 million in a Series E round led by Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala, and has become a unicorn.

 

This is the second announcement by Glovo to shut down its services in the Egyptian Market. In April 2019, Glovo announced that it halted its operations in Egypt. It, however, resumed its services again in June of the same year in compliance with a decision of the Egyptian Competition Authority which ordered Glovo to resume operations in Egypt within 30 days.

 

Earlier, Glovo began directing users to Otlob, the food delivery app owned and operated by Germany’s Delivery Hero, which is also a part owner of Glovo. Hence, the Egyptian Competition Authority soon after accused Glovo and Delivery Hero of anti-competitive practices.