The founders of Getir have filed a lawsuit against Mubadala Investment Company, seeking at least $700 million in damages over an alleged breach of a 2024 restructuring agreement.
According to a report by the Financial Times, Getir co-founders Nazım Salur and Serkan Borançılı filed a claim at London’s High Court, arguing that Mubadala failed to transfer key assets as previously agreed.
The Core of the Dispute
The legal action centers on a June 2024 restructuring deal in which Mubadala injected $250 million into Getir and assumed majority control of its Turkish grocery operations.
Under the agreement:
- Mubadala would control the Turkish core business
- The remaining international and non-core assets would be spun off into a standalone entity controlled by the founders
However, the founders claim that only the most unprofitable and liability-heavy assets — including FreshDirect in New York and Turkish marketplace n11 — were transferred.
They argue that high-value assets, particularly Getir Finance, valued at approximately $510 million last year, were never handed over.
In their court filing, the founders allege that various Mubadala entities “conspired” to breach the agreement and later presented revised terms in December 2024 that significantly deviated from the original deal and were “highly disadvantageous.”
Timing: Uber Acquisition
The lawsuit comes shortly after Uber announced it would acquire Getir’s Turkish food delivery business for $335 million, in partnership with Mubadala.
The case adds another layer of complexity to Getir’s dramatic trajectory.
From $12B Valuation to Restructuring
Founded in Istanbul in 2015, Getir was one of the pandemic-era breakout startups. At its peak in 2022, the company was valued at nearly $12 billion, expanding aggressively across Europe and the U.S.
As post-pandemic demand cooled and capital markets tightened, Getir scaled back operations and entered restructuring negotiations — ultimately leading to Mubadala’s increased control.
Today, Getir continues to operate in Türkiye across:
- Grocery and food delivery
- Water delivery
- Getir Locals (local merchants such as butchers and florists)
- Integration of BiTaksi, also founded by Salur
What’s Next?
Mubadala has declined to comment publicly and has yet to file its defense in the case.
For the regional startup ecosystem, this lawsuit underscores a critical theme:
Governance, shareholder agreements, and restructuring clarity matter just as much as growth and valuation.
As one of Türkiye’s most iconic tech scale-ups enters a high-stakes legal battle in London, the outcome could set an important precedent for founder–sovereign fund relationships across MENA and emerging markets.
