According to Chinese media Reference News, US Bloomberg recently published an article stating that Chinese food delivery apps are rapidly growing in Brazil.

The article first stated that competition among food delivery apps is intensifying in São Paulo, and that Chinese apps are waging a fierce battle with established apps in the Brazilian market to gain an advantage in the race to acquire digital consumers in Latin America's largest market.

It then conveyed that Brazil, with a population of over 200 million, high urban population density, and widespread digitalization, can be described as an attractive gateway in the region, and that China's 99Food, under DiDi, and Keeta, under Meituan, are competing to usurp the position of iFood, Brazil's market leader.

According to the article, in the Brazilian market, Colombian Rappi and Uber Eats, as well as local startups, also attempted to enter, but they were unable to surpass iFood.

During Carnival in February this year, many fans of popular singer Ivete Sangalo flocked to Ibirapuera Park in São Paulo. The pop star, clad in neon yellow sequins, appeared on behalf of 99Food, the event's sponsor. 99Food is focusing on advertising featuring celebrities.

According to Keeta's estimates, the number of food delivery app users in Brazil has doubled in the past five years, reaching 120 million.

The optimistic outlook reflects the characteristics of tech-savvy Brazilian consumers. According to a Bloomberg Intelligence analyst covering Latin America, the proportion of e-commerce in Brazil's retail market is approximately 23%, significantly higher than the overall Latin American average of 16%.

99Food announced that it would resume food delivery services in Brazil in April 2025, after several years of struggle. It stated its intention to leverage its established ride-hailing and payment services to provide a comprehensive ecosystem to consumers, and would invest 2 billion reais (approximately 62.8 billion yen) in the first year of its relaunch.

Keeta's entry into the Brazilian market has also been tumultuous. It launched operations in São Paulo last year, planning to invest 5.6 billion reais (approximately 175.84 billion yen) over five years. However, by the end of February this year, it had postponed the launch of operations in Rio de Janeiro. In terms of monthly active users, it surpassed Rappi in less than three months since its launch, indicating "its surge in popularity," according to an analyst at market research firm Sensor Tower.