Flipkart, India’s foremost local e-commerce company, has raised a big new round of funding from a mix of new and existing investors. The company said it’s raised $3.6bn at a valuation of $37.6bn post-money.

• The fresh funding for Flipkart was led by GIC, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, SoftBank Vision Fund 2, and Walmart. Other participants included Tencent, Tiger Global, Franklin Templeton, and the Qatar Investment Authority.

• The roughly $38bn post-money valuation that came with the round is about 50% higher than Flipkart’s last valuation of $25bn when it raised a funding round led by Walmart last year. To note, Walmart owns the majority of Flipkart after it paid $16bn for a 77% stake in 2018.

• The fresh $3.6bn cash infusion will come in handy for Flipkart as it competes vigorously with Amazon in India. Amazon is hell-bent on expanding in India and is spending big to do so. Already, it’s cornered a great deal of the country’s e-commerce market, with a share of 31.2% compared to Flipkart’s 31.9% as of October 2020, according to Forrester Research.

• Flipkart’s business in India includes its large e-commerce operations, both its own goods and a third-party marketplace, as well as a gigantic logistics and supply chain arm serving local sellers in the country. The company also controls PhonePe, one of India’s leading payments apps with over 300 million users.

• Surely, the fresh $3.6bn will come in handy for Flipkart’s expansion as it fights a proxy war with Amazon on Walmart’s behalf, Back in the US, Walmart and Amazon are also at loggerheads in the retail world.

• India’s e-commerce market is growing steadily, so Flipkart and Amazon’s likes are not just battling for existing business but also for future prospects. It’s a major, tough battle indeed.

Share this...

Facebook

Pinterest

Twitter

Linkedin

Whatsapp

Email

Print