Amazon offers to buy 60 percent stake in India's Flipkart, report
The logo of Amazon is pictured inside the company's office in Bengaluru, India, April 20, 2018. Picture taken April 20, 2018. REUTERS/Abhishek N. Chinnappa (Reuters)
A bidding war may be getting underway between Walmart and Amazon for India’s online retailer Flipkart.
Amazon has reportedly made its own offer for a majority stake in Flipkart, according to a TV report in India.
Amazon has also offered a $2 billion breakup fee and is likely to be on par with Walmart’s bid for the company.
In April, Reuters reported that Walmart was likely to reach a deal to buy a majority stake in Flipkart by the end of June.
Reuters reported that Walmart completed its due diligence on Flipkart and made a proposal to buy 51% or more of the company for between $10 billion to $12 billion. The retailer is said to be buying both new and existing Flipkart shares, with new shares expected to value the company around $18 billion, with existing ones at about $12 billion.
Japan’s Softbank Group, which already owns about one-fifth of Flipkart through its Vision Fund.
For Walmart, a company that already operates more than 20 stores in the country, the deal would finally push them from being confined to a “cash-and-carry” wholesale business to a dominate force online.
No comment yet from the companies involved.