e-commerce
SoftBank invests $627 million in Snapdeal
MUMBAI: Seeking to tap into the growing e-commerce market in India, the Japanese telecom giant SoftBank announced a $627 million investment in the home-grown retailer Snapdeal, becoming the largest investor in the company.
This is the largest investment made by a single investor in an e-commerce company in India. Other existing investors have also participated in this round with a significant undisclosed investment.
Through this strategic investment and partnership with Snapdeal, the telecom group aims at strengthening its presence in India and leveraging synergies with its network of Internet companies around the world, according to the press release issued by the e-tailer.
While on the other hand, Snapdeal, will use the investments in expanding its chain of fulfillment centres. It will also look to make 3-4 strategic acquisitions in the coming few months specifically in the area of mobile technology and is planning to set up an incubation centre to hone and harness start-up businesses in the mobile technology space within next six months.
Talking about the investment, SoftBank chairman and CEO Masayoshi Son said, “Since SoftBank’s foundation, our mission has been to contribute to people’s lives through the Information Revolution. We believe India is at a turning point in its development and have confidence that India will grow strongly over the next decade. As part of this belief, we intend to deploy significant capital in India over the next few years to support development of the market.”
Adding to that, SoftBank’s vice chairman Nikesh Arora reckoned, “India has the third-largest Internet user base in the world, but a relatively small online market currently. This situation means India has, with better, faster and cheaper Internet access, a big growth potential. With today’s announcement SoftBank is contributing to the development of the infrastructure for the digital future of India. We want to support the leaders and entrepreneurs of the digital future; Kunal and Rohit are two such great leaders.”
Nikesh Arora will also be joining the board of Snapdeal as part of this strategic investment by the SoftBank Group.
Morrison & Foerster LLP acted as legal advisor to advising SoftBank on India law matters.
“Our entire team at Snapdeal is thrilled and honoured to have SoftBank as a strategic partner. With the support of Son-san and Nikesh, we are confident we will further strengthen our promise to consumers and create life changing experiences for 1 million small businesses in India,” said Snapdeal co-founder and CEO Kunal Bahl.
Founded in 2010, the company also claims to have more than 25 million registered users and more than 50,000 business sellers. Earlier this year, Snapdeal had raised $133.77 million in a round led by eBay and $105 million from institutional investors including Temasek, Myriad, Tybourne, Blackrock Inc. and Premji Invest. Tata Sons Chairman Emeritus Ratan Tata also made a personal investment into the company.
e-commerce
Amazon unveils first Trustworthy Shopping Experience Report
32,000 bad actors targeted, 15 million fake products removed in 2025.
MUMBAI: In a marketplace where trust is the real currency, Amazon is showing its receipts. Amazon has released its first-ever Trustworthy Shopping Experience Report, offering a detailed look at how it polices its vast digital shelves from counterfeit crackdowns to scam detection and review authenticity. At the heart of the report is a four-pronged strategy, proactive controls, risk anticipation, enforcement against bad actors, and consumer protection. The scale is staggering. Since 2020, Amazon’s Counterfeit Crimes Unit has pursued over 32,000 bad actors globally through litigation and criminal referrals spanning 14 countries.
The clean-up drive accelerated in 2025, with the company identifying and disposing of more than 15 million counterfeit products worldwide. Legal action also led to the takedown of over 100 websites linked to fake reviews and scams, an ongoing battle in the age of algorithmic manipulation.
Behind the scenes, artificial intelligence and machine learning are doing the heavy lifting. Amazon says it monitors billions of daily interactions across listings, reviews, and seller activity to spot trouble before it surfaces. Its predictive systems can even flag potentially infringing listings for trending products before brands raise the alarm.
Tools like Omniscan, which verifies product safety information at scale, and SENTRIX, designed to detect and eliminate phishing websites, are part of this expanding tech arsenal. Together, they aim to reduce risk while keeping the platform usable for legitimate sellers.
That balance between protection and friction is a tightrope Amazon acknowledges. Rohan Oommen, Vice President of Worldwide Customer and Partner Trust, noted that while safeguards are critical, they must not stifle genuine businesses. Features like the Account Health Dashboard are meant to give sellers clearer visibility into compliance and performance.
Consumer-facing measures are also getting sharper. From direct safety alerts to recall notifications and refund guidance, Amazon is leaning into transparency, backed by partnerships with consumer organisations to raise awareness.
The report’s release follows the expansion of Amazon’s Counterfeit Crimes Unit into India, signalling a deeper push into one of its fastest-growing markets, with closer coordination planned between brands, sellers, and law enforcement.
In short, as online shopping grows more complex, Amazon is betting that trust built through data, enforcement, and a fair bit of algorithmic vigilance will be its most valuable product yet.
