Brazil's iFood sues Meituan-backed Keeta over alleged espionage

By Luciana Magalhaes

SAO PAULO, ‌May 20 (Reuters) - ​Brazilian ​food delivery app iFood, owned by Dutch investment group Prosus, is suing rival Keeta, controlled ‌by Chinese group Meituan, for alleged unfair competition in ⁠Brazil.

• In a lawsuit filed with a business court in Sao ‌Paulo, iFood requested a ‌judicial order for its rival to change its business practices and pay moral damages of 1 million reais, ​plus additional compensation to be determined, according to documents obtained by Reuters.

• In the lawsuit, iFood alleges ⁠that consulting firms approached its employees to obtain confidential business information in exchange ​for "significant compensation."

• In a statement to Reuters, Keeta said it advocates for an open and fair ​market, in full compliance with ‌all requirements. The company denied hiring third parties to approach individuals on its behalf for ⁠such purposes, and added it had not received any formal notification.

• In its lawsuit, iFood said it identified a now-former ⁠employee who accepted one such proposal and met via videoconference while still ​at the company, leading to a police investigation, including the search and seizure of electronic devices.

• Through these measures, iFood said ‌it obtained documents showing that accounts linked to the Meituan domain had taken part in ‌the conversations.

• Keeta announced its entry about a year ⁠ago into the Brazilian food ‌delivery market dominated ​by iFood, with an initial investment of approximately $1 billion dollars.

(Reporting by Luciana Magalhaes; Editing by Aurora ‌Ellis)

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