Recently, the Brazilian homegrown food delivery platform giant, iFood, announced an increase in its investment in Brazil from last year's 13.6 billion Brazilian reals to a total of 17 billion Brazilian reals for the current fiscal year ending in March 2026, marking a significant 25% increase. iFood plans to utilize this funding for promotions, technological upgrades (especially in artificial intelligence), marketing, and providing credit support to restaurants.

According to reports, the majority of this investment comes from the company's earnings in Brazil, supplemented by a portion of funds from the Prosus investment group (specific proportions undisclosed). Lucas Pittioni, Vice President of Public Policy, Legal Affairs, and Mergers and Acquisitions at iFood, stated that this capital injection is based on confidence in the sustained growth of the Brazilian food delivery market, emphasizing that the company is not blindly subsidizing to suppress competitors.

Currently, iFood processes 120 million orders per month and has approximately 55 million customers. The company aims to achieve 200 million orders per month and 80 million customers by 2028, focusing on increasing the average number of orders per capita, particularly targeting the middle and low-income Class C consumer market.

iFood predicts that by 2025, the total income of delivery riders will reach 5.2 billion Brazilian reals, a 27% increase from the previous year. Brazil currently has over 400,000 delivery riders, with around 30% working over 90 hours per month and the remaining 70% working part-time.

With this investment, iFood plans to create 1,100 new permanent positions, with 500 positions yet to be filled, primarily concentrated in the technology field. Additionally, iFood will allocate 1.8 billion Brazilian reals to support credit services for the restaurant industry, which is crucial for their development and can help them enhance professionalism, modernization, and operational efficiency.

Daniel Wainstein, a partner at the financial advisory firm Seneca Evercore, stated that even if this funding is used to provide loans to merchants, it should be seen as an investment, benefiting the entire food delivery market ecosystem. Maurício Morgado, a professor at the Brazil Júlio Vargas Foundation (FGV), believes that the entry of new platforms is advantageous for delivery riders and restaurants, helping to balance the market landscape, especially amidst the prevalence of flexible employment.