Flipkart To Return To India From Singapore
This is for better IPO prospects in a country that does not allow dual listings
E-commerce company Flipkart has decided to shift the base of its holding company from Singapore to India, as its parent Walmart aims to take the 17-year-old company public.
Several Indian startups that once opted to operate from foreign locales for better access to capital and smaller tax bills, are now set to return home from financial hubs including the US and Singapore.
Financial technology firms Razorpay and Pine Labs, quick commerce startup Zepto and advertising technology company InMobi are among startups that have already shifted, or are in the process of returning to India.
This is for better initial public offering (IPO) prospects in a country that does not allow dual listings.
In a statement, Flipkart said, “The move represents a natural evolution, aligning our holding structure with our core operations.”
Flipkart was started in 2007. It sold books online and expanded into a behemoth, competing with Amazon in India. It moved its holding company to Singapore in 2011.
In 2018, Walmart bought a controlling stake in Flipkart, giving it ownership of PhonePe, a digital payments company, then owned by Flipkart.
In 2022, PhonePe separated from Flipkart, shifting its headquarters from Singapore to India. It left Walmart with a $1 billion tax bill.
According to Dan Bartlett, the executive vice-president for corporate affairs of Walmart, the company is hoping to list Flipkart and PhonePe in India over the next few years.
For this, PhonePe has begun preparations for a public listing on India’s stock exchanges.