Meal delivery startup Deliveroo has raised $275 million

Meal delivery startup Deliveroo has announced it has raised a $275 million (£210 million) Series E funding round.

The company says the money comes from private equity company Bridgepoint, returning investor DST Global, and General Catalyst, and it also includes participation from returning investor Greenoaks Capital.

This is a huge fundraise for a British startup, and it shows that investors have confidence in Deliveroo's business (even with the uncertainty of Brexit hanging over the startup scene).

Deliveroo faces competition from new services to London like UberEATS, but it has the capital to aggressively expand around the world. It says the money will go towards international expansion and its RooBox remote kitchen idea. It's building kitchens in shipping crates that are set up as dedicated kitchens for meal deliveries. It currently has five in London but plans to launch more.

It was reported in June that Deliveroo's revenue was set to hit £130 million this year. That represents growth of more than 1,000% in the last year.

Founded in 2012 and headquartered in London, Deliveroo has built a platform that allows people to get food from popular restaurants delivered to their home or office by a cyclist or moped driver.

For every transaction, the company charges the customer a £2.50 delivery charge and takes a commission fee from the restaurant. Restaurants like PizzaExpress, Dishoom, and Gourmet Burger Kitchen have all signed up to the platform, as has Michelin-starred restaurant Trishna.

The last time Deliveroo raised money was in November. It raised $100 million (£76 million) in a round led by DST Global and Greenoaks Capital with participation from existing investors Accel, Hummingbird Ventures and Index Ventures.

Deliveroo CEO Will Shu sent the following statement about the raise:

"After seeing strong growth in the markets we launched in November, our new focus is to drive further innovation in food delivery. In particular, I'm excited about exploring completely new ways to solve the hardest problems restaurants face when offering delivery. RooBox is the first illustration of this approach, and innovations like these are at the heart of our mission. We're proud and honoured to have the support of Bridgepoint, DST Global and General Catalyst in this endeavour."