Approved · Notification · Phase 1 · decided in 23 days, 10 June 2026
Restaurant Brands New Zealand Limited and Yum! Brands, Inc. formed a joint venture, Taco Ventures Pty Ltd, to acquire 29 Taco Bell restaurants. The joint venture will acquire 9 restaurants from Restaurant Brands' subsidiary and 20 from Collins Foods Limited's subsidiary. Restaurant Brands will hold 60% and Yum's subsidiary 40% in the fast-food venture.
Restaurant Brands New Zealand Limited ( Restaurant Brands ) and Yum! Brands, Inc. ( Yum ) propose to acquire, via a joint venture (Taco Ventures Pty Ltd ( JV Co )): 9 Taco Bell restaurants from Restaurant Brands’ subsidiary QSR Pty Ltd, and 20 Taco Bell restaurants from Collins Foods Subsidiary Pty Ltd, a subsidiary of Collins Foods Limited ( Collins ). Restaurant Brands will control JV Co and hold a 60% interest, while Gardiner Lane Capital, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Yum, will acquire a 40% interest. Yum is a NYSE-listed, US-based restaurant company that owns, operates and franchises various fast-food brands and associated restaurants, including KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell. Yum holds equity in and operates around 70 KFC restaurants in Australia but does not operate or hold equity in any Taco Bell or Pizza Hut restaurants in Australia. Restaurant Brands is a Yum corporate franchisee. In Australia, it operates 9 Taco Bell restaurants, all of which are in NSW, and 74 KFC restaurants. Collins is an ASX-listed Australian fast-food corporation that owns and operates 294 KFC restaurants and 20 Taco Bell restaurants in Australia, under franchise arrangements with Yum.