More Competitive Delivery Market Leads iFood to Boost Investment in Brazil to R$17 Billion

(ESTADÃO) The capital will be used for promotions, technology, and restaurant credit; despite growing competition, the company says it won’t burn cash to stop rivals

Faced with the return of 99 to the food delivery segment and the announcement of the arrival of the Chinese platform Keeta, iFood increased its investment in the country by 25%, from R$13.6 billion last year to R$17 billion in this fiscal year (until March 2026). As the market leader, the company will allocate the amount to promotions, technology (especially in artificial intelligence), marketing and credit for restaurants.

The capital to be invested is a combination of the company's earnings in the country with a percentage, not disclosed, of investment from the investment group Prosus, which owns the business. The amount is 17 times higher than what was announced by 99, which is returning to operate the delivery service in the country after having left the sector in 2023.

The reason given by the rival for returning is the prohibition of exclusivity contracts with restaurant chains with more than 30 units, which opened up room for greater competition in delivery.

Lucas Pittioni, vice president of public policy, legal affairs and M&A at iFood, says that the new investment in the country considers a growth in the delivery market and that the company is not burning money with promotions to curb the advance of the competition.

"The investment in promotions follows the proportion of the total invested amount, 25%. The question may arise whether we are opening the wallet to react to the competition in a more irrational way, and the answer is no. This was an investment planned since April," says Pittioni.

iFood currently has 120 million orders per month and 55 million customers. In three years, in 2028, the goal is to reach 200 million monthly orders and 80 million customers. In other words, the volume of orders should grow more than the number of customers, which implies an increase in orders per person, and the company's focus will be on class C consumers.

iFood estimates that delivery workers’ earnings will total R$5.2 billion in 2025, 27% more than in the previous year. Currently, across the country, there are more than 400,000, of which about 30% work more than 90 hours per month and 70% are considered occasional workers, less than that.

Pittioni says that both the number of orders and the amount paid per delivery have increased in the last year. The earnings of delivery workers range from 1.8 to 4.1 times the minimum wage, depending on the number of hours worked.

In formal hiring, the company estimates that it will end the year with 1,100 new jobs. Of that amount, 500 workers still need to be hired, most of them for the technology sector.

Credit to support businesses

Of the R$17 billion announced, the credit front of the company will absorb R$1.8 billion. Pittioni says that the resources are important for restaurants to grow by investing in professionalization, modernization or efficiency of their operations. "These are companies that have difficulty accessing credit. As a rule, they are family restaurants that do not find this offer in traditional banks," he says.

For the founding partner at financial advisory firm Seneca Evercore, Daniel Wainstein, even if part of the announced capital is invested in loans to store owners, and not in technology development or marketing, the amount can be considered an investment.

"They are putting more money into the country to finance their customers. It is an investment that is coming to Brazil. They will invest so that companies have more cash to finance their customers," he says.

Wainstein also says that the arrival of new competitors in the delivery market brings a positive effect to the entire chain. "The customer wins. In any case of increased competition, the tendency is for companies to differentiate themselves from the competition through better service or lower prices. The beneficiaries will be the restaurants and the customers who use these services," he says.

For FGV professor Maurício Morgado, the arrival of more companies is also important for delivery workers. "Restaurants are complaining a lot about the power that current players have managed to charge very high fees. Having more competition will be good, especially in this scenario of alternative jobs in which we live today," he says.

Competitor 99 eliminated the fee charged by delivery platforms — something expected to last 24 months. In practice, the measure reduces the price of dishes for the consumer and increases profitability for restaurants. As a result, a R$130 pizza ordered through the app today may cost R$100.

Economic impact

According to an annual study in partnership with Fipe, iFood’s activities will account for 0.64% of Brazil’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2025, compared to 0.55% in 2024, moving R$140 billion in economic activity in the country. The study also shows that iFood generates more than 1 million direct and indirect jobs.

Published on 08/05/2025 and available at: https://www.estadao.com.br/economia/negocios/cenario-delivery-disputado-ifood-aumentar-17-bi-investimento-brasil/.