The Singapore-based foodpanda has let go of a number of its Southeast Asian employees as part of its efforts to move towards profitability.

The layoffs happen as Delivery Hero, the German business that owns foodpanda, faces increasing pressure to turn a profit amid an uncertain economic climate.

With Delivery Hero’s clear objective to become EBITDA-positive, there is a "critical need now to reduce costs and move to profitability" to remain competitive, the company said in response to queries from People Matters.

“We have made the painful decision to downsize some teams. We are supporting impacted employees to help them through this transition, through employee assistance programmes and extended insurance and benefits."

The meal delivery service, however, didn’t disclose the number of employees laid off. The company reportedly said that it will lay off 150 workers, or 20% of its Philippines staff, in addition to job losses in Thailand.

“To our impacted colleagues – we are very sorry we let them down; we will forever be grateful for their contributions and dedication to foodpanda,” added the statement. 

The company reportedly said that it will lay off 150 workers, or 20% of its Philippines staff, in addition to job losses in Thailand.

The move comes months after it designated Singapore as the location of its regional headquarters in July, housing 1,200 workers.  foodpanda also announced the appointment of Lawrence Wen as new managing director for Singapore,  who has more than 15 years of experience in the food and beverage, tech, consulting and financial services sectors.

The meal delivery company held a special event for its PandaPro subscribers last month to celebrate its tenth anniversary. The three-day event called "panda paradise" was held at the open car park at Sunway City Kuala Lumpur.

Recently, foodpanda collaborated with digital investment platform Syfe to offer free financial workshops to all foodpanda delivery partners in Singapore.  This partnership is part of foodpanda’s efforts to invest in its delivery partners’ upskilling and growth.

Foodpanda, founded in 2012, is active in 400 cities across 11 nations.

Note: The story is updated with additional details from foodpanda.