Flipkart, PhonePe Could Be $100 Billion Businesses in India, Claims Walmart CFO

Walmart's Flipkart marketplace and PhonePe payments business in India could be $100 billion (Rs. 8,19,750 crore) businesses buoyed by strong growth, the retailer's chief financial officer said on Wednesday at an investor conference.

Walmart does not break out sales of Flipkart and PhonePe but over the past few months, executives have singled out the two businesses as key drivers in meeting its target of doubling the gross merchandise volume it sells in foreign markets to $200 billion (nearly Rs. 16,20,800 crore)  in five years.

Walmart's international chief has previously called India's 1.4 billion population a "significant" opportunity for the retailer.

In its most recent quarter ended April 30, Walmart said its Flipkart business generated double-digit sales growth, boosted by new shoppers in some cities and a 50 percent jump in ad sales. Flipkart was valued at more than $40 billion (nearly Rs. 3,27,900 crore) in 2022 and counts itself among India's most valuable startups.

Walmart also called PhonePe's performance "really impressive" after it hit an annualized payment value led by the Unified Payments Interface, a highly popular method in India to make instant real-time payments.

PhonePe controlled 46 percent share of the payments market in December, according to National Payments Corporation of India, and has 400 million registered users. In March, Walmart gave that business a boost by pouring an additional $200 million (nearly Rs. 1,640 crore) at a pre-money valuation of $12 billion (nearly Rs. 98,360 crore) cementing its position as India's most valuable payments startup.

"It is not crazy to think that both those businesses could be $100 billion businesses in the future," Walmart's Chief Financial Officer John David Rainey said.

© Thomson Reuters 2023