Flipkart raises $3.6 billion at a valuation of over $37 billion, to focus on ‘millions of small and medium Indian businesses’

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Flipkart raises $3.6 billion at a valuation of over $37 billion, to focus on ‘millions of small and medium Indian businesses’
FlipkartBuisness Insider
  • The round was led by GIC, CPP Investments and Softbank.
  • Parent company Walmart also pumped money into the Indian ecommerce biggie.
  • CEO of Flipkart said the firm will focus on India’s MSMEs.
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Walmart-owned e-commerce titan Flipkart has raised $3.6 billion (approx. ₹26,800 crore at current rates) at a post-money valuation of $37.6 billion. The round of funding was led by Singapore-based GIC, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP investments), Softbank Vision Fund 2 and Walmart.

DisruptAD, Qatar Investment Authority, Khazanah Nasional Berhad, Tencent, Willoughby Capital, Antara Capital, Franklin Templeton and Tiger Global also participated in this mega-investment round, the company said in a statement on Monday.

Kalyan Krishnamurthy, chief executive officer of Flipkart, said in a statement that Flipkart will “focus on accelerating growth of millions of small and medium Indian businesses, including kiranas [mom and pop stores].”

Parent company Walmart is expected to hold about 74% to 75% stake in the ecommerce giant after this round. Walmart had acquired 77% stake in Flipkart back in 2018, giving exits to founders Binny and Sachin Bansal, subsequently.


The acquisition had given a partial or complete exit to several other marquee investors as well, including Tiger Global, SoftBank, Naspers and Accel among others.
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Tiger Global and SoftBank were two of the biggest beneficiaries of the Flipkart acquisition. Tiger Global clocked three times return on its $1 billion investment in the company. Meanwhile, SoftBank had invested about $2.5 billion in Flipkart back in 2017 and sold its stake to Walmart a year later, for $4 billion.


Flipkart will use this fresh capital to expand its operations, further increase its market share and other vertices like groceries, fashion and consumables. A part of the fund will also go into enhancing the company’s supply chain and logistics network.


“This investment by leading global investors reflects the promise of digital commerce in India and their belief in Flipkart’s capabilities to maximise this potential for all stakeholders. We will continue to invest in new categories and leverage made-in-India technology to transform consumer experiences and develop a world-class supply chain,” CEO Krishnamurthy added.

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The capital will also allow Flipkart to take on other well-fueled competition Amazon, Reliance and Tata Group, who have been going aggressive to take on Flipkart’s share of the market.
Flipkart India Private Limited had reported a revenue of ₹34,171 crore in the financial year 2020, whereas Amazon Seller Services was at ₹11,028 crore. These revenues were for e-commerce businesses.

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