Meituan to expand Keeta food delivery services in MENA region

MENA – Leading Chinese food delivery company Meituan has announced plans to expand the presence of its Keeta brand in the Middle East and North Africa.

Keeta, the food delivery platform launched in Al-Kharj, Saudi Arabia, in September, has expanded to Riyadh and plans to enter Dammam and Jeddah by the end of the year, according to internal sources.

By January 2025, it aims to extend operations to Mecca and Medina, the two holiest cities in Islam. The company’s broader strategy includes covering 80% of Saudi Arabia by July 2025. 

Looking beyond Saudi Arabia, Keeta plans to enter other Middle Eastern markets, including the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, possibly next year.

With a significant portion of its customer service operations based in Jordan, the company also considers Jordan a key market for expansion.

While Iraq was initially part of its regional plans, the company has decided to forgo entry due to concerns over political instability and safety risks. 

In addition to its Middle Eastern ambitions, Keeta is exploring Egypt as a potential gateway to North Africa.

This aligns with Meituan’s global aspirations, as outlined by its founder and CEO, Wang Xing, during a recent earnings call. While Wang acknowledged that Meituan remains focused on Saudi Arabia for now, he emphasized a long-term goal of establishing a global presence.

He highlighted the platform’s “encouraging results” in Saudi Arabia as a catalyst for its expansion strategy and noted the vast potential in the region’s food delivery sector. 

Keeta’s success in Saudi Arabia follows its recent achievement in the Hong Kong market, where it overtook Foodpanda in the first quarter of the year to secure the largest share of orders, holding 43% of the market, according to analytics firm Measurable AI.

Despite its short presence in Saudi Arabia—just under three months—the platform is set to face stiff competition from established players like Uber Eats, Zomato, HungerStation, and Jahez. 

The CEO attributed Keeta’s competitive edge to its advanced operational systems and technology, refined over a decade in China. “Our platform enables us to organize networks efficiently and deliver food faster, which is what consumers demand,” he stated. 

Launched in Hong Kong in May 2023, Keeta is the food delivery brand through which Beijing-based Meituan aims to establish a foothold in global markets.

The app was recently recognized as the “Best Everyday Essential” on Google’s Play Store in Hong Kong. 

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