Walmart to Raise Up to $3 Billion for Flipkart to Challenge Rivals: Report

Walmart-backed Flipkart is considering raising $2 billion (roughly Rs. 16,500 crore) to $3 billion (roughly Rs. 25,000 crore) at a valuation of more than $40 billion (roughly Rs. 3.3 lakh crore) to expand its product range in India and challenge rivals, the Mint reported on Tuesday, citing two people with direct knowledge of the matter.

The world's biggest retailer is keen to bring in strategic investors for the Indian company, but is also open to selling to large pure-play investment firms, the report said, citing one of the two people.

Walmart is yet to formally mandate investment bankers to look for strategic partners and large global investors for the latest fundraising plan, the report added.

Flipkart is currently valued at over $40 billion (roughly Rs. 3.3 lakh crore) and may dilute around 7 percent for raising as much as $3 billion (roughly Rs. 25,000 crore), the Mint report said.

Last year, Flipkart raised $3.6 billion  (roughly Rs. 30,000 crore) in a funding round, giving it a valuation of $37.6 billion (roughly Rs. 3 lakh crore).

"We do not comment on speculation," a Walmart spokesperson said, while Flipkart did not respond to a request for comment.

Walmart acquired a roughly 77 percent stake in Flipkart for about $16 billion (roughly Rs. 1.3 lakh crore) in 2018 - its biggest deal ever - and said later that year that it could take the company public in four years.

In April, Reuters reported that Indian e-commerce company Flipkart has internally raised its IPO valuation target by around a third to $60 billion (roughly Rs. 5 lakh crore) to $70 billion (roughly Rs. 6 lakh crore) and plans a US listing in 2023 instead of this year.

© Thomson Reuters 2022

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