Square talked to Uber and Grubhub about selling its Caviar business (SQ)
Thomson Reuters
Square had discussions with Uber and GrubHub about selling its Caviar meal delivery service, but the parties disagreed sharply on price and the deal talks ended earlier this year, a person familiar with the matter told Business Insider.
The talks to took place in late 2015 and early 2016 after Square received inbound interest from the companies about Caviar, the person said. Those talks are not ongoing and Square is not currently being shopped around.
Uber made an offer that was well below the $100 million that Square believed Caviar to be worth, the person said. While Square felt compelled to entertain the offer, it was ultimately deemed a "lowball" offer.
News of the acquisition talks were first reported by Bloomberg's Eric Newcomer and Selina Wang, who also cited Yelp as a company that Square had talks with.
Square, which offers a mobile payment service and was founded by CEO Jack Dorsey, acquired Caviar in 2014 for $90 million in stock, according to Bloomberg.
Tensions between Square and Caviar have been high, said another source familiar with the situation. While Caviar is seen as a favorite of Dorsey, Square’s other leadership has been pushing back against the delivery network’s mounting losses.
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