Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) has made a $25M investment in Colombian delivery company Rappi in a move interpreted as an effort to compete with Latin America’s e-commerce juggernaut, MercadoLibre (MELI).
As one of the region’s best-known last-mile delivery companies, Rappi will provide Amazon (NASDAQ:AMZN) with a logistics network that spans from Mexico to Chile along with its “Turbo” service that can deliver merchandise in as little as 10 minutes.
Rappi also offers restaurant deliveries and has gained regulatory approval for its digital wallet, offering credit cards and savings accounts. At the same time, the partnership gives Rappi access to Amazon’s (NASDAQ:AMZN) logistics and cloud computing business.
According to sources cited by Bloomberg, Amazon’s (AMZN) $25M convertible note entitles the company to acquire a 12% stake in Rappi via warrants if certain milestones are met.
Rappi’s co-founder and CEO Simón Borrero indicated the company could go public in 2025.
