Walmart could be about to buy a minority stake in Flipkart
- Thursday, February 1st, 2018
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Walmart is reportedly in advanced talks with one of Amazon’s rival in India, Flipkart, over the acquisition of large minority stake in the eCommerce marketplace – a deal which could be finalised as early as March.
According to the Economic Times, citing a pair of sources, the deal could see Walmart pick up somewhere in the region of a 15 to 20 per cent stake in Flipkart. It would enable the companies to combine their strengths in a bid to topple their common enemy.
Talks between Walmart and Flipkart are not entirely new, and there have been reports over the last few years of Walmart nearing the acquisition of a minority stake. 
Of course, Walmart isn’t new to linking up with eCommerce firms. It picked up Jet for $3bn in 2016, and put Jet’s founder Marc Lore in place as its eCommerce CEO. More recently, it entered into a partnership with Japanese eCommerce firm Rakuten to launch a grocery delivery service in Japan, while Walmart also became the exclusive mass retail partner for the Kobo’s eBooks and audiobooks.
