Walmart Inc. on Wednesday announced its high profile acquisition of Flipkart for $16 billion for a valuation of over $20 billion, making it the largest ecommerce acquisition in the world. The Bentonville company has acquired 77% of the Bengaluru-based company, as per sources.
This is also the largest buyout for the US company with its biggest bet ever in online space and on India, underscoring the growing digital consumption potential in a country of 1.3 billion.
The Wednesday announcement culminates discussions between Walmart and the Bengaluru company that began in September 2016 with Walmart’s plans to pick a minority stake in Flipkart. The talks pivoted earlier this year towards the world’s largest retailer acquiring Flipkart.
