London (AFP)

The food delivery platform Deliveroo made its first steps on the stock market on Wednesday in London, with a valuation at the bottom of its expectations at 7.6 billion pounds and questions about the status of its deliverers.

Deliveroo, known for its app for ordering food from restaurants, will officially enter the UK market at 0700 GMT (0800 London).

This is the most important operation since 2011 in London, which seeks to remain attractive in the face of increased competition from Europe with Brexit.

Exchanges will initially be reserved for professional investors before being open to the general public from April 7.

Deliveroo has set its IPO price at 3.90 pounds per share, the company confirmed in a statement Wednesday, giving it a valuation of 7.6 billion pounds.

In detail, the company floated 21.3% of its capital, allowing it to recover 1.5 billion pounds, including one billion through the issuance of new shares, and 500 million existing shares sold.

The supply could even climb to 22.9% of the capital if investors wish to buy more shares.

Deliveroo, in which the giant Amazon held 16% of the capital before the operation, wants to use the money to finance its growth, even if the company is not yet profitable.

"I am very proud that Deliveroo is going public in London, at home," said Will Shu, founder and CEO of the company.

"We will continue to invest in innovations that help restaurants and the grocery industry grow, provide more choice than ever for customers and give delivery people more work," he added.

However, the British company was forced to revise its ambitions downwards, in view of the recent volatility in market conditions.

Investors overwhelmingly subscribed to the transaction, but were not prepared to pay too much.

She had initially hoped for a price of up to 4.60 pounds, a valuation that could have reached 8.8 billion pounds.

She then reduced the range to between 3.90 and 4.10 pounds.

- A "disappointing" result?

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"It is certainly a disappointing result for an initial public offering that generated a lot of enthusiasm, but the recent weakness in the prices of many of its counterparts in the United States, like Doordash, seems to have taken some of the luster off the market. sector, "said Michael Hewson, analyst at CMC Markets.

The IPO should allow Deliveroo to better compete with its competitors, while it does not have so far "the financial capacity of Uber (which owns Uber Eats, editor's note) or the size of Just Eat Takeaway ", considered to be the number one in the market, according to Mr. Hewson.

It will also remain to be seen what will be the performance of Deliveroo once the health restrictions are lifted, while its activity has been boosted by the pandemic.

For Mr. Hewson, restaurateurs, if they can reopen their doors, may be reluctant to pay the commission requested by Deliveroo and which can reach up to 30%, according to the analyst.

The IPO also allows Will Shu to grow his shares.

It has also opted for a system with two types of shares for a period of three years in order to retain control while selling part of the capital.

The operation has also revived the debate on the precariousness of delivery men, who are self-employed, symbols of the "gig economy", or the economy of odd jobs, on which digital platforms rely to thrive.

The British self-employed workers' union, the IWGB, is notably planning a strike action on April 7 in order to demand better working conditions.

The viability of its economic model is also of concern to very influential investors in the City.

Several asset management giants, such as Aberdeen Standard and Aviva Investors, who each weigh in the hundreds of billions of pounds, are unwilling to invest in the company, citing the bad example set by its social practices.

© 2021 AFP