e& Acquires UAE’s Online Marketplace ServiceMarket

Emirati telecommunications company Etisalat by e& has acquired ServiceMarket, a UAE-based online household marketplace.

Founded in 2013 by Bana Shomali and Wim Torfs, ServiceMarket is an online marketplace for household services.To date, it offers more than 40 services across the UAE, ranging from handyman to cleaning and moving services.

The acquisition is meant to bolster e&’s current services under their new platform, Smiles, which includes food and grocery delivery amongst other services.

“The online household services market has demonstrated strong growth over the past few years with an increasing number of consumers preferring to access a broad range of services at the comfort of their homes, and through digital platforms, they can trust,” Khaled ElKhouly, Chief Consumer Officer of Etisalat by e& tells StartupScene. “As a pioneer in the digital transformation journey for all UAE citizens, we have been expanding our portfolio of lifestyle services on the Smiles platform, including the recent addition of food and grocery delivery services.”

Etisalat by e& aims to accelerate growth through the creation of a resilient business model, bringing next generation technologies through smart platforms in entertainment, retail and financial technology.

Mergers and acquisitions have been gaining pace since last year. In 2022, the MENA region recorded an estimated 146 exits, with the UAE, KSA and Egypt doubling their exits YoY, according to Magnitt’s Emerging Venture Markets report. The latest exits to take place in the UAE were that of Paymennts.com being acquired by Hala, and Namshi being acquired by Noon.