Deliveroo has reportedly hired four major investment banks to help it prepare for an initial public offering (IPO) that could be one of the largest to hit London’s stock market this year.
According to a Sky News report, the online food delivery app has appointed Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Citi, Jefferies and Numis to help it prepare for the float, which some market sources have predicted will occur around April and could reach a value of between £5-£8bn.
READ: Deliveroo, Bumble at centre of IPOs speculation amid growing investor confidence
Deliveroo, which counts ecommerce giant Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN) among its backers, has been steadily inching its way towards an IPO as it looks to tap the market for funds to pursue an expansion strategy and battle its main rivals Uber Eats and Just Eat Takeaway.com NV (LON:JET).
The app currently boasts around 45,000 restaurants on its platform and recently unveiled plans to expand into 100 more towns and cities across the UK in 2021.
Takeaway delivery firms like Deliveroo have seen a boom in business over 2020 as lockdown restrictions forced restaurants to close their doors and left most proprietors relying on takeaway orders to stay afloat.