Valuation jingoism

Headline-grabbing valuation stories of e-commerce start-ups in the middle of raising funds can also backfire. One portal that has been in news for expanding its footprint in foreign markets, recently came out with a media statement that sought to scotch these reports. Its press statement talked of "speculative reports in certain sections of the media" about valuation, fund-rasing and potential investors and requested "responsible media houses" not to publish any more news unless it is verified by the company concerned. This marks a major departure from practice since e-commerce companies tend to neither confirm nor deny valuation-related stories.