Internet company Yandex has acquired on-demand ride provider Uber’s stake in Russia-based autonomous technology developer Yandex Self Driving Group (SDG) as well as indirect interest in other affiliated entities, TechCrunch reported yesterday.
Yandex has paid $1bn in total for the stakes, ensuring 100% ownership of SDG in addition to food delivery platform Yandex.Eats, last-mile delivery service Yandex.Delivery and grocery store delivery service Yandex.Lavka.
SDG is a developer of autonomous driving technology and had initially spun off from MLU, a food delivery and on-demand ride company jointly established by Yandex and Uber in 2018 through the merger of ride-sharing platform Yandex.Taxi and Uber’s Russia-based operations.
Uber owned a 36.6% stake in the company that was reduced to 18.2% when SDG was spun off as a separate business in September 2020. Yandex then invested $150m into the independent company, having previously supplied about $65m.
Uber also held a 33.5% collective interest in Yandex.Eats, Yandex.Lavka and Yandex.Delivery prior to their acquisition.
The deal is part of a wider restructuring of MLU and SDG, according to a regulatory filing. Yandex.Eats, Yandex.Lavka and Yandex.Delivery will be demerged from MLU, which will now focus on the ride-hailing and car-sharing segments.
As part of the deal, Yandex will gain a two-year American call option to buy the remainder of Uber’s interest in MLU for $1.8bn, a figure that could increase to $2bn if exercised in 2023.
Yandex will continue to use the Uber brand in Russia and a number of other countries until 2030.