Amazon offers to buy 60% stake in Flipkart: Report

NEW DELHI: Amazon.com Inc has made a formal offer to buy a 60 per cent stake in Indian online retailer Flipkart, a TV channel reported on Wednesday, citing sources. Amazon also offered Flipkart a breakup fee of $2 billion, the report added. 

HIGHLIGHTS

• The report said that Amazon is also seeking a non-compete agreement with Flipkart's founders
• A deal with Flipkart would step up the Walmart-Amazon battle for a bigger share of India's fledgling e-commerce market

Amazon's bid is likely to be on par with Walmart Inc's bid for the Indian e-commerce company, it further said.The report also stated that Flipkart's investors and founders are in favor of the deal with Walmart, with founder Sachin Bansal overseeing final negotiations with Walmart.
Amazon is also seeking a non-compete agreement with Flipkart's founders, the report further added.

Reuters in April reported that Walmart was likely to reach a deal to buy a majority stake in Flipkart by the end of June. A deal with Flipkart would step up the Walmart-Amazon battle for a bigger share of India's fledgling e-commerce market, which Morgan Stanley estimates will be worth $200 billion in a decade.

The Walmart global team may come to India soon to close the deal, the report added.A spokesman for Walmart declined to comment, while Amazon said it does not offer comments on rumours and speculation.Flipkart did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.