[단독] ‘Random 2 trillion’ sent Yogiyo investment guide… Sale start

The sale of Yogiyo, which is attracting attention as a trillion-unit merger and acquisition (M&A) sale, is in full swing.

According to the investment banking (IB) industry on the 15th, Germany’s Delivery Hero (DH) recently sent an investment guide to Delivery Hero Korea, a Yogiyo operator, to original buyers through Morgan Stanley, the sales organizer. The investment guide was sent to multiple strategic investors (SI) and financial investors (FI), and is said to have been intensively sent to domestic and foreign private equity fund (PEF) managers.

Yogiyo has garnered attention in the IB industry as the second largest delivery application in Korea. According to Nielsen KoreaClick, Yogiyo took second place in the domestic delivery app market as of September last year with a 30% market share. It was only half of the 59.7% recorded by the No. 1 people of delivery, but more than four times higher than 6.8% of the 3rd place Coupang Itz. Yogiyo recorded a deficit in 2019, but it turned into a surplus due to the delivery boom caused by Corona 19 last year, and it is known that the number of orders is still on the rise.

Accordingly, many private equity fund managers and large domestic distribution companies are reviewing the value of the sale. In the private equity industry, multiple domestic and foreign managers that can buy-out by trillions (taking over management rights) are seriously looking at this transaction, and among SIs, Coupang, Shinsegae, Uber, and GS Retail are mentioned as candidates for acquisition. In particular, the fact that the online food delivery market is growing rapidly every year is interpreted as attracting attention from original buyers. According to the National Statistical Office, the amount of online food delivery transactions in Korea from 2.7 trillion won in 2017 has doubled every year to 17.38 trillion won last year. This is the background of the prospect of a market that can share the fruits of growth even with the second-tier companies. However, some observers in the private equity industry say that it is difficult for FIs to step in and take over. Some say that the way the e-commerce market works, where it is important to increase its market share while risking losses, is not suitable for private equity managers who must maximize profit margins within five to six years after the acquisition.

SI also has obstacles. One of the burdens is that if the acquisition is successful, it will have to compete with the seller immediately. There is concern that Delivery Hero, which has acquired the nation of delivery, knows the pros and cons of Delivery Hero Korea, a Korean subsidiary, and will compete in the so-called slanted playground.

Nevertheless, given the recent market atmosphere, the prediction that the Yogiyo takeover will be a box office is dominant. This is because Coupang has been evaluated for its corporate value approaching 100 trillion won after listing on the New York Stock Exchange, and interest in domestic online commerce companies is increasing. Several SI and FIs are also rushing into eBay Korea’s competitive bidding.

In addition, synergy effects are expected to be high when the Yogiyo delivery area is expanded not only to food but also to marts, cosmetics, and drugs. This is why some people choose the mobility industry as a good industry group to create Yogiyo and business scalability. If delivery functions such as food are added to mobility services, it is expected that the market ripple effect will be great. In fact, it is known that the private equity fund Texas Pacific Group (TPG), a major shareholder of Kakao Mobility, is considering participation before the acquisition. The synergy effect is expected when Yogiyo is installed on the Kakao T platform.

The price the seller wants is in the range of 2 trillion won, which is said to be around 8 times the sales of Yogiyo last year. In the IB industry, after the release of this teaser, it is expected that preliminary bidding can proceed after April after a series of processes, such as signing a confidentiality agreement (NDA) and sending out an investment prospectus (IM).

[강두순 기자 / 박창영 기자]
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