Rocket Internet was founded in Berlin by brothers Oliver, Alexander and Marc Samwer. Chief Executive Oliver and his brothers are serial internet entrepreneurs who became Germany's newest billionaires with the flotations of Rocket Internet and the European online fashion site Zalando it helped launch in 2008.
When it listed in 2014, it was touted to be Europe's Amazon, but since then, the stock has lost half its value as investors became anxious if the range of e-commerce, online market place and financial services start-ups it has invested in will ever make money.
Plans to float its big investments - HelloFresh, Delivery Hero and Westwing - hit a wall. Samwer assured investors last September that operating losses at his ''proven winners'' (it shares data only for them) would peak in 2015, three would break even within two years, and one would go public in two years. Last month, it raised $450 mn for an investment fund to support its businesses.
Investors see this as an attempt by Rocket to shore up its value, but Rocket's market capitalisation is around €3 billion, less than half the amount it says its companies are worth - it claimed a last portfolio value of €7.2 billion as on November 30, 2015. That's an irony Rocket investors have to live with.
