Dubai's Emaar Malls bids $800 mln for Souq.com to compete with Amazon

Emaar Malls has unexpectedly bid up to $800 million to take over Middle Eastern e-commerce giant Souq.com, Arabian Business, reported citing sources familiar with the matter.

Emaar will be competing with US-based Amazon, which has resumed recently its negotiations to acquire Souq for $650 million, sources said.

However, it was reported that Souq has an exclusivity clause as part of its ongoing talks with Amazon, which means that it would not be able to accept a counter offer while still in negotiations.

Souq.com is reportedly valued at $1 billion and is considered the region’s largest e-commerce platform that markets more than 1.5 million items.