Main owner Walmart also joined other investors in the funding round.

Flipkart, the Indian e-commerce platform majority-owned by Walmart (NYSE: WMT), announced today (July 12, 2021) its $3.6 billion funding round led by GIC, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments), SoftBank Vision Fund 2, and Walmart. Sovereign funds DisruptAD, Qatar Investment Authority, Khazanah Nasional also participated in the round alongside big-name investors such as Tencent, Willoughby Capital, Antara Capital, Franklin Templeton, and Tiger Global. (Flipkart)

Use of funds by Flipkart

The online shopping site will use the money to invest further in its technology, supply chain, and infrastructure to support an expanding consumer base. The company will lend a technological hand to small businesses in India, particularly in the fashion industry and to kiranas (India’s mom-and-pop grocery shops). The firm will therefore also expand its grocery and “last-mile” delivery infrastructure.

“As we serve our consumers, we will focus on accelerating growth for millions of small and medium Indian businesses, including kiranas,” said Kalyan Krishnamurthy, Chief Executive Officer. “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.”

Valuation

The latest round values Flipkart at $37.6 billion post-money, up sharply from the $24.9 billion tag the firm garnered a year ago when it raised $1.2 billion.

Walmart acquired 77% of Flipkart in 2018 for $16 billion.

The deal included payments unit PhonePe which was valued at $5.5 billion when it was spun out from Flipkart last year. However, Walmart and Flipkart continue to remain the biggest shareholders in the payment app, which has more than 300 million users and facilitates over 1 billion transactions per month. About 80% of these occur in India’s tier 2 and 3 cities and beyond.

Flipkart statistics

• 350 million registered users
• 300,000 registered sellers
• 6 million kiranas
• Its logistics and supply chain arm, Ekart, employs more than 100,000 people
• Fashion brand entity Myntra is a leader in its category

“The opportunity to meet consumer demand for high-quality selection at low prices and a young population make online consumption critical to India’s quest for the ‘$5 trillion economy’ that Flipkart’s growth story has been enabling,” said Lydia Jett, Partner, SoftBank Investment Advisers.

Related Story: Abu Dhabi Sovereign Fund ADQ To Invest $500 Million In India’s Flipkart (Bloomberg)