Walmart Buys Out Tiger Global’s Flipkart Stake, Valuing Startup at $35B

Retail giant Walmart bought out Tiger Global Management’s remaining stake in India-based startup Flipkart in a deal that values the e-commerce decacorn at $35 billion.

That valuation is down from the $38 billion valuation Flipkart received after its massive $3.6 billion round in 2021, per The Wall Street Journal, which broke news of the transaction.

Tiger had invested nearly $1.2 billion in Flipkart between 2010 and 2015 and has generated $3.5 billion in gains, the report stated.

Founded in 2007, Flipkart is one of India’s biggest startups, with a portfolio of e-commerce sites and brick-and-mortar stores.

Tiger changes strategy

Tiger was one of the most active late-stage growth investors when the venture capital market was booming in 2021.

However, as the market has significantly slowed, Tiger has dramatically cut back on its startup investment pace, and in May it was reported the New York-based crossover investment giant had hired an adviser to help it sell off some stakes in startups.

Performing secondary sales of stakes in companies it previously bought is seen as a way for Tiger to return capital to its investors as both avenues for exits — IPOs and M&A — have cooled substantially.

Tiger has significantly cut down on its investments throughout the past year, according to Crunchbase data. The firm made 249 deals in the first half of last year, but so far this year has made only 20.

In April, it was reported Tiger Global’s $12.7 billion fund — which was launched near the end of 2021 — had a paper loss of 20%, net of management fees, as of December.

In March, The Wall Street Journal reported Tiger Global had marked down the value of its investments across its venture capital funds by about 33%.

Further reading:

• Tiger Global Looking To Sell Off Startup Stakes — Report
• Tiger Global’s $12.7B Venture Fund Down 20% — Report

Illustration: Dom Guzman