Deliveroo: Boss Will Shu in £15m pay day after selling millions of shares

The chief executive and co-founder of Deliveroo has received a pay day of almost £15m after selling more than 9m shares in the London-listed company.

Will Shu has disposed of 9.4m shares worth £14.8m between 12 September and 16 September to “cover personal property investments”.

Following the sell off, Shu retains 95.8m shares in Deliveroo. Shu does not take part in its annual bonuses or long-term share award schemes.

The move comes after Deliveroo posted its maiden profit last month, notching up a pre-profit of £1.3m for the first half of 2024, swinging from a loss of £82.9m a year ago.

The previously loss-making firm said it had seen encouraging signs in terms of consumer behaviour as food price rises continued to ease, with the number of orders placed over the half-year increasing by two per cent to total 147.

In the UK and Ireland, total spending jumped by seven per cent at constant currency, partly driven by customers placing orders more frequently.

Its shares have surged 38 per cent in the past six months, recently hitting a two-year high.

But the stock is still less than half the highs seen during the Covid-19 years, when takeaway delivery firms enjoyed booming business as lockdowns forced people to order food at home.

Deliveroo, which was co-founded by Shu in 2013, operates in 10 countries and works with around 140,000 riders across the world.

In March, City A.M. reported that the top bosses at Deliveroo had been awarded their first pay rises since the company’s float on the London Stock Exchange almost three years ago.

Deliveroo’s annual report confirmed that the company’s top executives have been awarded a three per cent pay rise.

At the time, the business said the rises are the first since its IPO and “were made against the backdrop of increases provided to the broader employee population over the last three years”.