Flipkart all set to buy Snapdeal

Nexus Venture Partners (NVP) has apparently given its nod for Snapdeal’s sellout to Flipkart. Japan’s SoftBank, which secured a nod from Kalaari capital last month, got a go-ahead from NVP as well.

As per various reports, the term sheet with Flipkart could be signed soon and the due diligence for the deal would commence immediately thereafter.

Sources told PTI, Snapdeal founders would get about $25 million each, while NVP could get close to $100 million and stake in the merged/new entity. Kalaari could get about $70-80 million.

SoftBank yesterday said it suffered a loss of $1 billion on its investment in Snapdeal during 2016-17. SoftBank currently owns over 30% in Snapdeal, while Nexus has roughly a 10% stake and Kalaari holds 8% share in the firm.

The deal between Snapdeal and Flipkart, if completed, would mark the biggest acquisition in the Indian e-commerce space and change the landscape of the sector that is witnessing intense competition among players.

Indian e-commerce companies have seen funding dry up over the last few months as investors are focusing extensively on profitability and rationalisation of expenses.

With intense competition from deep-pocketed global rivals like Amazon, companies like Flipkart and Snapdeal could face more heat in the coming days.

There have been reports that Snapdeal's mobile wallet service Freecharge could be sold separately with players like Paytm and MobiKwik being in the fray.