Flipkart, India’s homegrown e-commerce giant owned by Walmart, is reportedly preparing for an IPO in H2 2026 at a valuation of $35-40 billion. If successful, it would be the largest Indian tech IPO ever, surpassing LIC’s Rs 21,000 crore issue. Here’s what investors need to know.
Business Overview
- GMV (Gross Merchandise Value): $25 billion (FY26E), making it India’s #1 e-commerce platform
- Revenue: Rs 70,000 crore (FY26E, +22% YoY)
- Monthly Active Users: 200 million+
- Key Verticals: Flipkart Marketplace, Myntra (fashion), Cleartrip (travel), PhonePe (spun off), Flipkart Wholesale
- Logistics: Ekart handles 2 million deliveries/day with 90%+ shipments delivered in-house
Path to Profitability
Flipkart has been narrowing losses consistently:
- FY24: EBITDA loss of Rs 4,800 crore
- FY25: EBITDA loss of Rs 2,200 crore
- FY26E: EBITDA breakeven expected in H2
The improvement is driven by higher advertising revenue (Rs 8,000 crore), grocery business scaling (Flipkart Minutes), and logistics efficiency gains.
Competitive Landscape
Flipkart competes with Amazon India (#2 by GMV), Meesho (#3, focused on value segment), and JioMart (#4, Reliance’s play). In quick commerce, Flipkart Minutes competes with Blinkit, Swiggy Instamart, and Zepto.
Valuation Context
At $40 billion valuation:
- Price-to-GMV: 1.6x (Amazon US trades at 2.5x, MercadoLibre at 3.5x)
- Price-to-Revenue: 4.2x (reasonable for a high-growth e-commerce company approaching profitability)
- Walmart’s last internal valuation (2024): $35 billion
Should You Subscribe?
Flipkart represents the most comprehensive play on India’s $150 billion e-commerce market. The IPO timing (H2 2026) will depend on market conditions, but fundamentally, this is a must-watch for every Indian investor. Key risk: competition from Reliance’s JioMart and continued cash burn in quick commerce.