MAM
BBC World lines up two year end specials
MUMBAI: BBC World will be airing two special year-end one-hour episodes – Review 2004 and India: The Year Ahead. These specials will take a hard look at the year gone by.
These specials will be broadcast on 26 December and 2 January under the India Business Report segment.
UTV CEO Ronnie Screwvala will bring his insights of the macro economic headlines of the year. The programme produced by UTV, will be in the form of a panel discussion in which some of the most prominent economists and business leaders in India will discuss the main issues facing the Indian economy in 2004, and the challenges ahead in 2005. An audience featuring business students, entrepreneurs and corporate executives will also form a part of the discussion.
The panel discussions are preceded by viewpoints from Asian Development Bank deputy country manager Sudipto Mundle for 2004 and from Gurcharan Das for 2005.
The panel discussions include CRISIL Chief Economist Subir Gikran, Centre for Monitoring the Indian Economy MD Mahesh Vyas and Shell Group of Companies chairman Vikram Singh Mehta for the year that was and JM Morgan Stalnely MD Nimesh Kampani, Godrej Group chairman Adi Godrej and Oxus Research and Investments MD Surjit Bhalla for 2005 – what’s in store.
Brands
Flipkart completes reverse flip to India ahead of IPO
Walmart-owned e-commerce giant shifts domicile from Singapore to Bengaluru
MUMBAI: Flipkart has completed its restructuring to move its parent company from Singapore back to India, marking a key milestone as the Walmart-owned marketplace prepares for a potential initial public offering on Indian stock exchanges, ET reported, citing people aware of the matter.
The move, often referred to as a “reverse flip”, relocates the company’s legal home to India and aligns its corporate structure more closely with its largest market. It also clears an important regulatory step for Flipkart as it explores listing plans.
As part of the restructuring, several Singapore-based entities have been merged into Flipkart Internet Private Limited, which will now serve as the main holding company for the entire group.
The consolidation brings a number of major businesses directly under the Indian parent company. These include fashion platform Myntra, logistics arm Ekart, travel booking platform Cleartrip, healthcare marketplace Flipkart Health, and fintech venture Super.money.
Under the new structure, global investors including Walmart, Microsoft, SoftBank, and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board will hold their stakes directly in the Indian entity rather than through an overseas holding company.
The redomiciliation required approval from the Indian government because Chinese technology company Tencent owns around a 5 to 6 per cent stake in Flipkart. Under Press Note 3, investments from countries sharing a land border with India require prior government clearance.
Flipkart had already secured approval from the National Company Law Tribunal in December. With the latest clearance from the central government, the company has now obtained all the regulatory approvals needed to complete the relocation, ET reported earlier.
Flipkart had originally shifted its holding structure to Singapore in 2011 to tap global capital more easily. However, as India’s capital markets have matured, several start-ups have begun returning their domiciles to the country ahead of public listings. Companies such as Razorpay, Groww, and Meesho have taken similar steps.
The company is now expected to move ahead with its IPO preparations and has begun early discussions with merchant bankers. According to people familiar with the matter, Flipkart could file its draft prospectus later this year, setting the stage for what may become one of the most closely watched listings in India’s e-commerce sector.
Flipkart has been majority-owned by Walmart since 2018, when the US retail giant acquired a 77 per cent stake in the company for $16 billion in one of the largest e-commerce deals globally.
