iFood, Prosus NV's Brazilian unit, filed a complaint with the Administrative Council for Economic Defense (Cade) against Chinese Meituan, responsible for Keeta's operation in Brazil. The accusation is that the competitor practices artificially low prices with the objective of eliminating competition in the food delivery market through digital platforms.
Keeta recently arrived in Brazil and competes directly with iFood, which held approximately 75% of the food delivery market in the country before the Chinese rival's arrival. The complaint highlights the intensification of competition for web-based services in Brazil.
In the document sent to Cade, iFood alleges that Keeta uses the cash reserves of its parent company to subsidize discounts on orders of R$250 or less and charges rates below those charged to restaurants. The Brazilian company maintains that the strategy does not represent merit-based competition, but rather a dispute over which company has more resources to finance aggressive discounts for restaurants and high payments for delivery workers.
