Flipkart India revenue grew 12% to Rs 34,610 cr in FY20; losses dropped 18%

The company's total expenses for the year were reported at Rs 37,760 crore. During FY20, the company allotted total equity shares worth Rs 4,455 crore to Flipkart Private Limited Singapore

Walmart-owned e-commerce major Flipkart has reported a revenue of Rs 34,610 crore for the financial year 2019-20 – an increase of 12 per cent over the previous year. The company’s net loss during the year, at Rs 3,150 crore, dropped 18 per cent from 2018-19, showed regulatory documents sourced from business intelligence platform Tofler.

During FY20, the company allotted total equity shares worth Rs 4,455 crore to Flipkart Private Limited Singapore and its total expenses for the financial year stood at Rs 37,760 crore.

According to the documents, the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) directed the Competition Commission of India (CCI) to launch an investigation against Flipkart India Private Limited and Flipkart Internet Private Limited for certain matters arising out of a CCI order dated November 6, 2018. Both entities filed a civil appeal before the Supreme Court challenging the order, which is currently pending.

The company’s disputed statutory dues from 2011 to this financial year were Rs 173 crore, of which Rs 27 crore was paid under protest, according to the records. The forums where these disputes were pending included the Commissioner Of Income-Tax (Appeals), Joint Commissioner of Commercial Taxes (Appeals) and Appellate Deputy Commissioner.

Experts said that Flipkart’s future revenues were going to improve, as the Covid-19 pandemic had accelerated a shift to e-commerce, with an increasing number of consumers shopping online at a higher frequency. Flipkart and its rival Amazon, besides others, witnessed blockbuster festive-season sales this year.

India’s online festive sale in one month (during October-November) stood at $8.3 billion in gross sales, including for brands and sellers – up 65 per cent year-on-year – exceeding forecasts, according to a report by consulting firm RedSeer. The festive season this year saw 88 per cent customer growth from last year, driven mainly by about 40 million shoppers from Tier-II cities and beyond.

 

Flipkart’s flagship festive sale Big Billion Days saw at least 40 per cent growth over last year, said people in the know. The firm achieved its sales target for the week-long event which ended last month in just three days. This year, marketplace sellers witnessed in just two days of BBD the growth level they had seen during six days last year.

Walmart is locked in a battle with Amazon, led by its US rival Jeff Bezos, and Mukesh Ambani-owned Reliance’s JioMart for a dominance in India’s online retail market through Flipkart, which it bought for $16 billion in 2018. In July this year, Walmart led a $1.2-billion round in Flipkart, valuing the e-commerce firm at $24.9 billion.

Walmart International, which includes the retail giant’s operations outside the US, recently reported a 1.3 per cent rise in net sales in the third quarter of 2020, led by e-commerce firm Flipkart, Canada, and Walmex (Walmart de Mexico).

Excluding the currency factor, net sales were $30.6 billion, an increase of 5 per cent. It said strong growth in net sales at Flipkart was helped by a record number of monthly active customers.

Walmart President & Chief Executive Officer Doug McMillon had said Flipkart and digital payments firm PhonePe in India had strong results for the quarter. He had also said the number of monthly active customers on these platforms was at an all-time high.