Prosus N.V., or Prosus, is a global investment group that is investing and operating across sectors and markets with long-term growth potential. It is among the largest technology investors in the world.
Prosus has invested across multiple verticals, including social / gaming, classifieds, payments and
fintech, edtech, food delivery and ecommerce. Products and services of its businesses and investments are used by more than 1.5 billion people in 89 markets.
[
Prosus is majority-owned by South African multinational ]Naspers
Naspers Limited is a South African multinational internet, technology and multimedia holding company headquartered in Cape Town, with interests in online retail, publishing and venture capital investment. Naspers' principal shareholder is its ...
.Euronext Amsterdam
Euronext Amsterdam is a stock exchange based in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Formerly known as the Amsterdam Stock Exchange, it merged on 22 September 2000 with the Brussels Stock Exchange and the Paris Stock Exchange to form Euronext. The ...
and, as a secondary inward-listing, on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange
JSE Limited (previously the JSE Securities Exchange and the Johannesburg Stock Exchange) is the largest stock exchange in Africa. It is located in Sandton, Johannesburg, South Africa, after it moved from downtown Johannesburg in 2000. In 2003 ...
. Subsequent to its , Prosus is the largest consumer Internet company in Europe by asset value. Shares in the company were reported to have "soared on debut,"[ although the company was trading at a significant discount to the value of its portfolio.
]
Business
The group's expansion into Internet platforms began in the 1990s,[ spanning various tech investments, including:
* Social - ]Tencent
Tencent Holdings Ltd. () is a Chinese multinational technology and entertainment conglomerate and holding company headquartered in Shenzhen. It is one of the highest grossing multimedia companies in the world based on revenue. It is also the wo ...
(30.86%)
* Classifieds - OLX (100%), EPMG, OfferUp
* Fintech - PayU
PayU is a Netherlands-based payment service provider to online merchants. The company was founded in 2002, and is headquartered in Hoofddorp. It allows online businesses to accept and process payments through payment methods that can be integrate ...
(98.8%), Remitly, Red Dot Payment, BUX
* Food - iFood (100%),Brainly
Brainly is a company based in Kraków, Poland, with headquarters in New York City. It is social learning platform where students and educators solve their academic problems together Brainly's mission is to inspire students to share and explore ...
, Udemy, Skillsoft, GoStudent, GoodHabitz, Eruditus, BYJU's, Platzi, EduMe and SoloLearn
* Ecommerce - eMag (80.1%), Meesho, Mensa Brands, PharmEasy, Ula, ElasticRun, merXu, The Good Glamm Group
* Travel - Ctrip (6%)
* Mobility / Logistics - Bykea
Bykea, stylized as BYKEA, is a Pakistani ride hailing, ride hailing service and parcel delivery company based in Karachi, Pakistan. It was founded by Muneeb Maayr in 2016.
It competes with Careem Bike and Uber Moto in the region.
History
Bykea ...
, 99minutos, QuickRide, Dott, Shipper
* AgriTech: DeHaat, VeGrow, CaptainFresh
* Other: Airmeet, Wayflyer
Prosus is best known for its investments in Tencent, dating back to a 45% share in 2001. In 2019 the company attempted to acquire Just Eat
Just Eat (formerly known legally as Just Eat plc) is an online food order and delivery brand of Netherlands-based Just Eat Takeaway.com, and a former food delivery company. Just Eat was founded as a separate company in 2001 in Kolding, Denmark ...
, but lost the bidding war to Takeaway.com.
In March 2022, Prosus announced it was writing off its 25.9% stake (worth approximately US$700m) in social media company VK, after VK's CEO Vladimir Kirienko was put on a U.S. sanctions list.
Controversy
Following the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. A ...
which began on February 24, many international, particularly Western companies pulled out of Russia. Unlike most of its Western competitors, Prosus has been slow to announce any disinvestments or scaling back of its operations in Russia, drawing criticism. The criticism concerned in particular its Avito
Avito is a Russian classified advertisements website with sections devoted to general goods for sale, jobs, real estate, personals, cars for sale, and services. Avito is the most popular classifieds site in Russia and is the biggest classifieds s ...
service (a subsidiary of OLX), which among others publishes advertisements about recruiting to the Russian army.
Acquisitions
References
External links
{{Euro Stoxx 50 Companies
Companies based in Amsterdam
Companies listed on Euronext Amsterdam
Companies listed on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange
Financial technology companies
2019 initial public offerings
Companies in the Euro Stoxx 50
Tencent