Walmart-Flipkart $16 bn deal: A salute to the success of the Indian firm, says Assocham

Hyderabad: Industry body Assocham sees the Walmart-Flipkart deal as a salute to the success of the Indian start-up that pioneered the fledgling online retailing in a country where bulk of the trade is in the unorganised sector. “Isn’ it so great that a start-up goes on to fetch an enterprise valuation of about $21 billion, making the Walmart equity infusion the largest ever FDI into India”, Assocham Secretary General D S Rawat told PTI. “Despite several teething troubles, hats off to Indian entrepreneurs, especially those of the ‘First Generation’. For them, it is no-holds barred. Great spirit of enterprise,” he said. [caption id=“attachment_2268090” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] The Flipkart logo. Image courtesy Flipkart[/caption] Rawat also said the roll out of the online retailing has also meant formalisation of the Indian economy and a new ecosystem that rewards entrepreneurship. Former Chief Financial Officer of Infosys Ltd V Balakrishnan said it was a great validation of the potential of Indian consumer market as well as the evolving startup ecosystem. Large exits like this is very important to attract more and more talent and capital into the Indian startup ecosystem, he said. “This is a great time for someone to become an entrepreneur in India and success stories like this will only boost their confidence”, he told PTI. “Having said that, it is also sad to see foreign companies dominating the ecommerce marketplace in India which is one of the largest in the world”, Balakrishnan said. He expressed hope that the deal would enthuse more Indian capital to be invested in “our startup ecosystem”. The US retailer Walmart Inc acquired 77 percent stake in Flipkart for about $16 billion in its biggest acquisition till date. The deal values the 11-year old Indian e-commerce firm at $20.8 billion.