Amazon Seller Services Gets Fresh Capital Infusion

US e-tail giant Amazon has infused fresh capital to the tune of Rs. 1,950 crore into its India unit, Amazon Seller Services to strengthen the war-chest of the company against domestic rival, Flipkart.

Amazon Seller Services has so far received over Rs. 8,000 crores (about $1.28 billion) during this financial year from its US parent, as per documents filed with the corporate affairs ministry.

As per the latest filing, Amazon Corporate Holdings and Amazon.com have made the Rs 1,950 crore investment in the Indian unit.

The board of directors of Amazon Seller Services passed the resolution at their meeting on January 12, 2018.

The fresh funds will provide more arsenal to Amazon.in.

The company has been aggressively investing in expanding infrastructure and adding solutions to enhance consumer and seller experience.

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has committed investments to the tune of $5 billion (roughly Rs. 31,800) for the Indian market. The American company has also been pumping in funds to its other entities in India, including Amazon Pay and its wholesale business.

These investments have been directed towards building warehouses, strengthening logistics and increasing product assortment.

Amazon is also investing significant money in marketing and promotions as the company looks to bring more consumers into shopping online on its platform.

Bezos, as part of investor calls, has highlighted the importance of the Indian market to its operations on multiple occasions and has assured that the company will continue to invest in India.

When contacted, an Amazon India spokesperson said: "We remain committed to our India business with a long-term perspective to make e-commerce a habit for Indian customers and to invest in the necessary technology and infrastructure to grow the entire ecosystem".

Homegrown player Flipkart has also beefed up its kitty with funding of about $4 billion (roughly Rs. 25,400 crores) this fiscal. Japanese conglomerate SoftBank infused about $2.5 billion (roughly Rs. 15,900 crores), while Tencent, Microsoft and eBay pumped in about $1.4 billion (roughly Rs. 8,900 crores) into the Bengaluru-based firm.