Flipkart raises $3.6 bn, valuation hits $37.6 bn

Details of investment

– Sources said Canada Pension Plan Investment Board infused about $750-800 million while SoftBank has pumped about $500 million

– Sovereign funds DisruptAD, Qatar Investment Authority, Khazanah Nasional Berhad, Tencent, Willoughby Capital, Antara Capital, Franklin Templeton and Tiger Global also invested

New Delhi, July 12

Flipkart Group on Monday said it has raised $3.6 billion (about Rs 26,805.6 crore) in funding led by Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC, CPP Investments, SoftBank Vision Fund 2 and Walmart, valuing the e-commerce giant at $37.6 billion.

The company, which competes with Amazon, Reliance Industries’ JioMart and others in the burgeoning Indian e-commerce market, said it will continue to make deeper investments across people, technology, supply chain and infrastructure to address the requirements of a rapidly growing consumer base in the country.

While details about the investment made by these entities individually were not disclosed, sources said Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments) infused about $750-800 million, while SoftBank has pumped about $500 million.

The current funding round has also seen participation from sovereign funds DisruptAD, Qatar Investment Authority, Khazanah Nasional Berhad and marquee investors Tencent, Willoughby Capital, Antara Capital, Franklin Templeton and Tiger Global, Flipkart said.

The funding round values Flipkart Group at $37.6 billion (about Rs 2.79 lakh crore) post-money, it added.

With this deal, SoftBank is re-entering Flipkart’s cap table. SoftBank had sold its approximately 20% share when Walmart bought a 77% stake in Flipkart for $16 billion in 2018.

In July last year, Flipkart had announced a $1.2 billion (about Rs 9,048 crore) fundraising led by its majority shareholder Walmart that had valued the Bengaluru-based company at $24.9 billion (about Rs 1.87 lakh crore).

“This (latest) 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. As we serve our consumers, we will focus on accelerating growth for millions of small and medium Indian businesses, including kiranas,” Flipkart Group CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy said.