Google Investing $350 Million In Homegrown E-Commerce Major Flipkart

Google's investment is part of a nearly $1 billion funding round that Flipkart began last year.

Search engine giant Google is investing nearly $350 million in homegrown Flipkart, becoming the latest high-profile backer of the Walmart-owned homegrown e-commerce company, the media has reported. Google will also provide the e-commerce company with Cloud services, the Bengaluru-based startup announced in a brief statement on Friday, says a report by TechCrunch.

Google's investment is part of a nearly $1 billion funding round that Flipkart began last year. Bentonville, Arkansas-headquartered Walmart has led the round, investing $600 million late in 2023. This move is subject to regulatory and customary approvals. Google's investment and Cloud collaboration aims to help Flipkart expand its business and modernise its digital infrastructure to better serve customers in India.

Flipkart Grocery Grew 1.6 Times Compared To 2023

Notably, Flipkart's grocery business has grown 1.6 times compared to last year. Flipkart Grocery provides next-day deliveries in over 200 cities in the country, including major metros like Bangalore, Chennai, Kolkata, Mumbai, New Delhi, as well as tier II towns such as Anantapur, Berhampore, Gorakhpur, Moradabad, Nagaon, Saharsa, Shimoga, and Vellore.

Valued at $36 billion in the new investment, Flipkart leads the Indian e-commerce market, serving hundreds of millions of consumers in smaller cities and towns. The startup, which also owns fashion e-commerce company Myntra, holds about 48 per cent of the Indian e-commerce market, according to Bernstein.

Walmart-backed Flipkart competes with Reliance Retail, Amazon, SoftBank-backed Meesho, and a growing number of quick-commerce apps in India.

Reliance Retail, operated by Asia's richest man Mukesh Ambani, runs the largest retail chain in India and is increasingly building its e-commerce presence. Last year, Reliance Retail was valued at $100 billion following nearly $2 billion in investments from QIA, ADIA, and KKR, the report by TechCrunch added.

It is pertinent to note that this isn't Flipkart's first partnership with Google. The tech giant already serves as one of Flipkart's Cloud service providers, alongside its in-house Cloud infrastructure and Microsoft's Azure. Earlier in In 2017, Microsoft signed a deal with Flipkart to make Azure the e-tailer's exclusive public Cloud platform. As part of the agreement, Microsoft also invested $200 million in Flipkart.