Busiest Deliveroo riders in line for £10,000 bonuses in IPO

The busiest Deliveroo riders could be in for a windfall of £10,000 ($13,840) in the takeaway delivery company's IPO, as it gears up to offer £16m to thank its drivers.

The company said on Sunday there will be payments of £10,000, £1,000, £500 and £200, or local currency equivalents, with all riders who have worked with Deliveroo for at least one year and completed 2,000 orders receiving £200. The average payment per eligible rider will be £440.

The cash payment will be calculated by reference to the number of orders completed by each eligible rider, with the largest payments being made to those riders who have completed the highest number of orders in each market.

Hundreds of active riders are set to receive the largest payment of £10,000. Over half of those receiving this sum are in the UK, some of whom began riding with Deliveroo alongside CEO Will Shu soon after the company launched.

The company said it will also make £50m of shares available to its customers in a "Community Offer."

Riders and restaurant partners are able to participate if they have Deliveroo customer accounts.

From tomorrow, any Deliveroo customer who has placed an order will be able to register their interest in applying for shares in any future floatation via their Deliveroo app. All they will need to do from Monday is visit the app, or download it, and follow the instructions.

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The news comes as the company announced it had chosen to list in London, in an initial public offering (IPO) which could value the company up to $7bn. It is expected to float on the stock market as early as tomorrow.

Additionally, a separate £50bn communities fund will also pay for meals for vulnerable people and allow Deliveroo's around 50,000 UK riders to buy electric scooters.

Last month, the delivery firm urged the government for a return of the Eat Out to Help Out scheme once the hospitality sector is allowed to open its doors, in a letter to the prime minister that has also been signed by 330 other restaurants.

The letter, signed by the likes of itsu, Pizza Hut and Shake Shack (SHAK) among others, said the scheme had been crucial in allowing restaurants to survive last year.

“The boost the scheme provided not only helped protect restaurants from closure but also showed customers the work we have done to make sure they are safe and can get back to enjoying great food. We encourage the Government to consider a rerun of this innovative scheme when it is safe to do so,” the letter said.

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