US-based eBay today said it plans to sell its stake in Flipkart for about US $1.1 billion, and will relaunch eBay India focusing initially on cross border trade opportunity.
The statement by eBay came after Walmart Inc announced that it is buying 77 percent stake in Flipkart for about US $16 billion, and also within a year of Flipkart acquiring eBay India.
“eBay has notified Flipkart and Walmart that it intends to sell its holdings in Flipkart, which will represent gross proceeds of approximately $1.1 billion,” the eBay statement said.
Following the close of the transaction, eBay said it will also be ending the current strategic relationship with Flipkart, which includes unwinding commercial agreements with Flipkart and terminating Flipkart’s licence to use the eBay.in brand.
“We plan to relaunch eBay India with a differentiated offer to focus initially on the cross-border trade opportunity, which we believe is significant. We believe there is huge growth potential for e-commerce in India and significant opportunity for multiple players to succeed in India’s diverse, domestic market,” the statement said.
Only last year, Flipkart group raised US $1.4 billion from global technology majors eBay, Tencent and Microsoft. In exchange of an equity stake in Flipkart, eBay had made a cash investment of US $500 million and sold its eBay.in business to the Bengaluru-based e-commerce major.
