While we are yet to see the impact of Walmart on Flipkart, but Citi Research claims its arch rival Amazon India is worth $16 billion (approximately Rs. 1.09 lakh crores). This is the same amount Walmart has agreed to pay to acquire a 77 percent stake in Flipkart. However, Amazon India has 30 percent market share despite the lower estimated valuation, Citi says - same as the homegrown e-commerce startup. The Indian subsidiary of the US e-commerce behemoth is presently said to have a gross merchandise volume (GMV) of $5 billion (around Rs. 34,042 crores), while Flipkart (including Myntra) had GMV of $7.5 billion (roughly Rs. 51,000 crores).
However, Citi Research predicts that Amazon India will reach GMV of $70 billion (approximately Rs. 4.76 lakh crores) and touch $11 billion (around Rs. 68,000 crores) in revenue in 2027. And while the Amazon India GMV is forecast to grow at a healthy 23 percent annually until 2027 and touch $70 billion there will be still a lot more room to grow - the Indian e-commerce market is estimated will be worth $202 billion (about Rs. 1.38 lakh crores) at the time, the report says. But with roughly 30 percent on the market share, Amazon India will certainly be among the prominent names even then.
"After disappointing results in China, Amazon - led by its founder/ CEO Jeff Bezos - has been determined to win in India," the report authors Mark May and Hao Yan said, as reported by Forbes.
In India, the law permits e-commerce companies only to operate as marketplaces - one of the features unique to Indian e-commerce startups. Also, the market is massive enough for existing players as it has over 480 million Internet users that are even growing at 25 percent.
The recent Flipkart-Walmart deal brought the valuation of Flipkart to roughly $20 billion (nearly Rs. 1.35 lakh crores). The deal saw the exits of some prominent names from the company, including co-founder Sachin Bansal, and investors Tiger Global, Softbank and Naspers.
In June 2016, Bezos announced to invest over $5 billion to expand the presence of the online marketplace in the country. "I can assure you it's only the beginning and as we say in Amazon, it's only day one," the executive had said.
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