According to latest development in the FreeCharge acquisition trail, global ecommerce giant Amazon has made a $70-$80 million (Rs 466 crore- Rs 532 crore) bid to acquire the digital payments platform owned by troubled e-commerce marketplace Snapdeal. The news comes on the heals of buzzing rumours that the Gurugram-based ecommerce firm is also in deep talks to sell its payments unit to Axis Bank and Indian global telecommunications services company, Airtel’s mobile wallet Airtel Money.
Amazon’s bid for FreeCharge comes with a term sheet signed by the Seattle-headquartered ecommerce big weight Jasper Infotech, which owns and operates both Snapdeal and FreeCharge in India.
While Axis Bank $60-$65 million bid has emerged as one of the frontrunners to acquire FreeCharge, there have been several other offers on Snapdeal's plate for its payment unit.
Earlier this year, we have reported how Paytm, MobiKwik, Bank of Baroda (BOB) and Times Internet (Read Here) were all interested in buying the online mobile wallet on sale. In fact, Paytm had even signed a non-exclusive term sheet with FreeCharge at an expected deal value of $45 – $90 million, but the talks never progressed beyond that.
Founded in 2010 by Kunal Shah and Sandeep Tandon, FreeCharge was acquired by Snapdeal in April 2015 for a whopping $450 million which is currently valued at less than 80%. Not only this, recently it also received an investment of $3.38 million from Jasper Infotech.
The company backed by investors such as Valiant Capital Management, Tybourne Capital Management, and Sequoia Capital had secured total of $177.65 million in six rounds of funding including the funds infused by its parent company.
According to an ET source, though Amazon might have gone for a higher bid, but Axis Bank still remained Snapdeal's favourite to acquire the digital payments platform.
If Amazon successfully acquires FreeCharge, Amazon is most likely to merge into its existing payments entity, Amazon Pay. The global online retail giant has decided to invest $5 billion in its operations in the Indian subcontinent. It recently invested Rs 130 crore more into Amazon Pay India. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) recently granted Amazon India a license to operate a pre-paid payment instrument or wallet.
Amazon’s bid for FreeCharge comes with a term sheet signed by the Seattle-headquartered ecommerce big weight Jasper Infotech, which owns and operates both Snapdeal and FreeCharge in India.
While Axis Bank $60-$65 million bid has emerged as one of the frontrunners to acquire FreeCharge, there have been several other offers on Snapdeal's plate for its payment unit.
Earlier this year, we have reported how Paytm, MobiKwik, Bank of Baroda (BOB) and Times Internet (Read Here) were all interested in buying the online mobile wallet on sale. In fact, Paytm had even signed a non-exclusive term sheet with FreeCharge at an expected deal value of $45 – $90 million, but the talks never progressed beyond that.
Founded in 2010 by Kunal Shah and Sandeep Tandon, FreeCharge was acquired by Snapdeal in April 2015 for a whopping $450 million which is currently valued at less than 80%. Not only this, recently it also received an investment of $3.38 million from Jasper Infotech.
The company backed by investors such as Valiant Capital Management, Tybourne Capital Management, and Sequoia Capital had secured total of $177.65 million in six rounds of funding including the funds infused by its parent company.
According to an ET source, though Amazon might have gone for a higher bid, but Axis Bank still remained Snapdeal's favourite to acquire the digital payments platform.
If Amazon successfully acquires FreeCharge, Amazon is most likely to merge into its existing payments entity, Amazon Pay. The global online retail giant has decided to invest $5 billion in its operations in the Indian subcontinent. It recently invested Rs 130 crore more into Amazon Pay India. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) recently granted Amazon India a license to operate a pre-paid payment instrument or wallet.
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