As Era of Cheap Money Ends, Fast Deliveries Dry Up

As the era of cheap money comes to a close, tech’s couch potato era also appears to be ending. It seems fitting that on the day the Fed unveiled another hike in interest rates, fast-delivery startup Jokr said it was ending its operations in the U.S. If ever there was a business that relied on easy availability of money, it would be the crop of delivery startups like Jokr that emerged in the U.S. last year, offering to get bananas and yogurt to any customer within 15 minutes for a tiny fee.

It was a dream come true for someone who didn’t feel like getting off the couch to go buy that tub of ice cream on a Saturday night. But it proved to be a nightmare for investors, as these businesses were little more than cash bonfires. As we outlined in this report in January, Jokr estimated last fall that its U.S. business would generate $6.6 million in revenue in 2021 while burning through at least $24.4 million in cash during that period.