Flipkart yet to finalise stake sale deal with Walmart

Indian e-commerce firm Flipkart’s board is yet to finalise a deal to sell a stake to Walmart Inc., two sources with direct knowledge of the matter said on Friday, adding that a deal could just be days away.

Walmart is in advanced talks with Flipkart to acquire a controlling stake in the Bengaluru-based online marketplace at a valuation of at least $18 billion, Reuters has previously reported.

Taxation concerns

A third source told Reuters that while Flipkart’s board has ”in-principle” approved engaging with the U.S. retail giant based on the terms of an offer before them, taxation-related concerns and a few other issues need to be resolved.

Sources have said that Amazon.com Inc. has shown an interest in buying Flipkart, India’s top homegrown e-commerce firm, but a deal with Walmart is much more likely to go through. Amazon is Flipkart’s biggest rival in India.

Alphabet ‘investment’

The first two sources said Alphabet Inc. is also likely to invest in Flipkart alongside Walmart, but terms of the deal may change. Japan’s SoftBank Group, the biggest investor in the Indian firm through its private equity fund, is considering selling its stake as part of the deal if the price is right, another source said.

Flipkart, together with its fashion units Myntra and Jabong, controls almost 40% of India’s online retail market, while Amazon is a close second with a 31% share, according to Forrester data.