New Delhi: Paytm Mall has raised close to Rs 2,900 crore from SoftBank Investment Holdings and Alibaba.com Singapore E-commerce, a move that will give the online shopping venture of Paytm more financial muscle to take on giants like Flipkart and Amazon.
Market watchers say that the deal values Paytm Mall at USD 2 billion. According to a regulatory filing by Paytm E-commerce, an aggregate amount of USD 400 million (about Rs 2,600 crore) has come from SB Investment Holdings (UK) and its affiliates, including SoftBank Vision Fund.
Interestingly, SoftBank Vision Fund is also an investor in Paytm Mall rival, Flipkart where it had led a USD 2.5 billion financing round last year becoming one of the largest shareholders in the Bengaluru-based company.
About USD 45 million (about Rs 292.5 crore) has been pumped in by Alibaba.com Singapore E-commerce, the regulatory filing added. The funds will be pumped into the company in multiple tranches.
When contacted, Paytm Mall COO Amit Sinha said the latest investment led by Softbank and Alibaba reaffirms the strength of the company's business model, growth trajectory and execution capability.
"We are committed to increasing the business growth for the offline merchants, who serve their customers daily. The funds will be deployed for empowering the shopkeepers with superior technology and building logistics, strengthening the Paytm Mall brand and bringing an enriching experience to the customers," he added.
Emails sent to SoftBank and Alibaba did not elicit a response. Prior to this latest round of funding, Alibaba and Alipay together held over 56 percent, while Paytm founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma's holding stood at more than 12 percent. SAIF Partners held over 24 percent stake.
The deal, which marks SoftBank's first funding in Paytm Mall, will see the Japanese entity holding over 20 percent stake after the transaction is completed. In May last year, Softbank had made its biggest investment in an Indian digital enterprise of Rs 9,000 crore (USD 1.4 billion) in One 97 Communications that runs mobile payments services provider, Paytm.
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