Ahead of festive season, Flipkart India receives Rs 1,616 Cr from holding entity

Flipkart India Pvt. Ltd., the wholesale arm of the Walmart-owned e-commerce marketplace in India, has received Rs 1,616 crore from its Singapore-based parent entity - Flipkart Private Limited.

According to RoC filings with MCA, Flipkart has allotted 4,64,403 equity shares to its holding entity for a price of Rs 34,800 per share (including a premium of Rs 34,799).

This is the second round of investment for the wholesale arm in 2019. In January, it had received Rs 1,431 crore in fresh funding from its parent entity.

For the unaware, Flipkart's B2B arm purchases goods in bulk from manufacturers and then resells it to select merchants on its website. Generally, the ones the group has invested in or acquired.

The fresh investment comes ahead of Flipkart's Big Billion day sale 2019, which is scheduled from September 29 to October 2. On the other hand, Flipkart's rival Amazon India has already announced its upcoming Great Indian Festival sale, which is expected to start by late September or early October.

Like previous years, both arch-rivals will be fiercely competing to attract more shoppers through discounts and offers on various products including smartphones, laptops, appliances, and many more.

Meanwhile, the Department for the Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has asked e-commerce marketplaces such as Amazon and Flipkart to upload statutory audit reports certifying FDI compliance on their websites by September 30.

The mandate comes after Press Note 2 issued by the government in December last year asking FDI compliance certification to be submitted to the Reserve Bank of India (India).