BoB Financial and Snapdeal Launch Co-Branded JCB RuPay Contactless Credit Card

The co-branded card will offer up to 5% cashback on spends done on the Snapdeal app and website

·Cardholders can also get benefits worth up to INR 500 by activating their credit card within 30 days of issuance

BOB Financial Solutions Limited (BFSL), the wholly-owned subsidiary of Bank of Baroda (BoB) and Snapdeal in partnership with National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) and JCB International Co. Ltd. have announced the launch of the Snapdeal BoB JCB RuPay Credit Card. The card is designed keeping in mind the purchase behaviour of shopping enthusiasts and will offer a host of attractive benefits and rewards. The card will also be usable at international merchants and ATMs through the extensive JCB global network.

Users of the co-branded credit card will receive up to 5% unlimited cashback (accrued as 20 reward points on every INR 100 spent) on the Snapdeal app and website. Activation of the co-branded credit card within 30 days of issuance will entitle the cardholder to shopping benefits on Snapdeal worth up to INR 500.

The card also offers 10 Reward points per INR 100 spent on online, grocery and departmental store spends. For purchases in all other categories, customers will get 4 reward points for every INR 100 spent. The cardholders will also enjoy free Add-On cards for family members, waiver of 1% fuel surcharge, easy EMI options (pre and post purchase), and periodic offers across merchants.

Commenting on the partnership, Shailendra Singh, MD & CEO, BOB Financial said, "We are happy to launch our co-branded credit card with Snapdeal, in partnership with NPCI, at a time when both new customer acquisition as well as usage from smaller cities and towns continue to grow at an impressive pace. The challenges brought about by the pandemic have resulted in a rapid adoption of digital payments even in interior locations of the country. Our co-branded credit card will offer additional value to this large segment of customers that constitute Bharat!".

Himanshu Chakrawarti, President, Snapdeal Limited said, “Snapdeal’s target audience is the value-savvy, mid-income, price-conscious buyers who predominantly live in the smaller cities of India. The partnership between BOB Financial, NPCI and Snapdeal brings together parties with a deep understanding of this mega-segment of consumers and how they are evolving in terms of their use of technology and digital payments. Our co-branded card is another important step in offering additional value to our users.”

Ms. Praveena Rai, COO, NPCI said, “We are happy to associate with BOB Financial and Snapdeal for the launch of the distinctive co-branded JCB RuPay Contactless Credit Card. We believe that this proposition will appeal strongly to millions of Snapdeal and BOB Financial’s customers at large by offering them a unique and rewarding experience. At NPCI, we are strategically focussing on creating a wide array of offerings in the credit segment for the customers to experience delightful and memorable retail as well as e-commerce shopping.”

Mr. Yoshiki Kaneko, President and COO, JCB International Co. Ltd. said, “We are extremely excited to partner with BFSL and Snapdeal through our esteemed network partner RuPay. This product, besides offering great value and benefits within India, comes with unique benefits and privileges internationally. This includes access to exclusive JCB in-city lounges at many key international travel destinations and special discounts exclusively for JCB cardmembers at many international merchants. We are sure the cardmembers will enjoy the benefits of carrying this card with them wherever they go.”

About BOB Financial Solutions Limited:

BOB Financial Solutions Limited was established in the year 1994. It is a Non-Banking Financial Company, wholly owned by Bank of Baroda. The Company’s primary business is in credit cards with its key differentiator being simple, easy-to-understand products that are fairly priced and efficiently serviced. A pioneer in the space of credit cards, BOB Financial offers an array of products catering to all segments of customers. It is leveraging state-of-the-art technology to provide unique payment solutions to its customers.

For more information, visit www.bobfinancial.com

Gizmore and Snapdeal Partner To Launch Slate, Made In India Women-centric Smartwatch

Gizmore Slate will retail exclusively on Snapdeal for Rs 2,699

Gizmore, one of India’s leading Smart Accessories, Fitness Gear, and Home Audio brands, today announced the launch of Slate at an introductory price of Rs 2,699. Gizmore Slate is the first women-centric smartwatch from the brand.

Gizmore Slate is an amalgamation of style & functionality and truly embodies the brand’s philosophy of ‘New Age Fitness’. Targeting the women users, Gizmore Slate boasts of a completely unique design that makes it truly stand out. The smartwatch has a rectangular dial with 1.57 inch IPS Curved Display with a 500-nits peak brightness. It also supports Always-on-Display (AoD) feature. Encased in a sleek metal frame, Gizmore Slate comes with a premium silicone strap to enhance the look and feel. The smartwatch has been launched in pink, grey and black colours and will retail exclusively on Snapdeal for an unbeatable price of Rs 2,299. This sale price will be for the first 1,000 consumers on Snapdeal, after which it will be available for Rs. 2,699.

Gizmore-Slate (Black)

Gizmore-Slate (Pink)

Designed for women on the go, Gizmore Slate comes packed with an array of wellness features to track daily activities. The smartwatch has a heart rate monitor, blood oxygen monitor, sleep tracker, hydration alert, meditative breathing and menstrual cycle tracker. It has multiple sports modes, including Running, Yoga, Swimming, Basketball, Cycling, Trekking, Aerobics, etc. The smartwatch comes infused with modern-day features such as body temperature, Bluetooth calling and Alexa voice assistant. Gizmore Slate offers unmatched personalization as it supports more than 100 watch faces and a powerful battery, which can deliver up to seven days of nonstop performance on a single charge.

“Smartwatches have become an integral part of our lives and have moved beyond the functionality of a simple watch. At Gizmore, we are continuously working towards offering superior quality products packed with features at a price that suits all. We found a gap in the market, that there are not many smartwatches that cater to women, some of them are too large, too sporty or too techy-looking. Slate is a fashion-forward smartwatch that is designed keeping women in mind and will serve their need for an all-in-one smartwatch that helps them reach their fitness & wellness goals”, says Sanjay Kumar Kalirona, CEO and Co-Founder Gizmore.

“There is a rise in demand for a budget smartwatch equipped with wellness and connectivity features with battery longevity. For our value-focused customers, we are happy that Gizmore chose Snapdeal as its preferred platform to reach them in Tier 2 & 3 towns.” said Saurabh Bansal, Chief Merchandising Officer, Snapdeal Limited.

Gizmore had recently launched its Made in India GIZFIT 910 Pro. The unisex smartwatch has been well-accepted in the market. The home-grown brand has also roped in ace-cricketer Dinesh Karthik to drive a stronger connection with the youth. Gizmore is also a part of the "Swasth Bharat - FIT INDIA" mission, and through this partnership, it aims to play a more significant role in making India fit.

About Gizmore

Gizmore is a premium affordable smart accessories brand that offers premium products with innovative features and quality excellence and is in sync with the aspirations and demands of the consumer of new India. It is a one-stop shop for consumers looking for mobile accessories, home audio, and wearables. The company has completely redefined the home audio space by offering products that are cutting-edge, eye-catching and value for money. From tech enthusiasts to music aficionados, Gizmore has something to offer for everyone. Gizmore has set up a countrywide network of over 15,000 dealers across 225+ and is also available in 500+ modern retail outlets.

For more information, please visit https://gizmore.in/

Top-10 Most Valuable Consumer E-Commerce Firms

CB Insights, a New York-based private company that provides real-time information on startups using its market intelligence platform, has come up with world’s most valuable private e-commerce companies focused on consumers.

The report includes only private, active, VC-backed companies and subsidiaries, majority-owned companies have been excluded such as Flipkart, which has Walmart as its majority stakeholder, and Myntra, Jabong are subsidiaries of Flipkart.

The analysis report focuses on consumer-facing e-commerce companies, and we exclude companies focused on e-commerce enablement.

1. Instacart 

Valuation - US $17.7 Billion | Country - United States

Instacart is an American company that operates a grocery delivery and pick-up service in the United States and Canada. The company offers its services via a website and mobile app. The unicorn company reached a $17.7 billion valuation in 2020, following a Series H by Valiant Capital Partners and D1 Capital Partners.

2. SHEIN

Valuation - US $15 Billion   |  Country - China

Shein is Shenzhen, China-based company. Shein was founded in Nanjing, eastern China, in 2008 and it came in second only to Amazon in a ranking of teens' favourite e-commerce sites in financial services company Piper Sandler's latest “Taking Stock With Teens” survey.

3. Chehaoduo (guazi.com)

Valuation - US $9 Billion   |  Country - China

Based out of Beijing, China, Chehaoduo is an online C2C car trading platform that directly links individual car sellers and buyers.

4. Coupang

Valuation - US $9 Billion   |  Country - South Korea

Based out of Seoul, South Korea, Chehaoduo is an online C2C car trading platform that directly links individual car sellers and buyers. Founded in 2010, Coupang is the largest online retailer in South Korea, The company's annual revenue exceeds US$5.9 billion. The company's Rocket Delivery network provides same-day or next-day delivery of more than five million unique items.

5. Tokopedia

Valuation - US $7 Billion   |  Country - Indonesia

Tokopedia is an Indonesian-based online-mall that brings together buyers and sellers to allow online transactions securely and comfortably. Founded in 2009 by William Tanuwijaya and Leontinus Alpha Edison, Tokopedia is an Indonesian unicorn that secured $1.1 billion in funding round in 2018, which was round led by Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group Holding and Japan's SoftBank Group putting its valuation to about $7B.

6. Snapdeal

Valuation - US $6.5 Billion   |  Country - India

A well-known Indian e-commerce company based in New Delhi, India, Snapdel was founded by Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal in February 2010. The e-commerce firm features a wide range of products and services from thousands of national, international and regional brands.

In 2016, it was reported that SoftBank, one of the major investors in Snapdeal, wanted to merge Snapdeal with Flipkart. The discussions on merger with Flipkart went on for a number of months, but the deal did not go through due to lack of consensus within the Snapdeal Board.

In July 2017, Snapdeal chose to pursue an independent path, which it described as Snapdeal 2.0. As part of its 2.0 initiative, Jasper Infotech sold off its non-core businesses, FreeCharge & Vulcan Express and chose to focus all its attention and resources on its core business, the Snapdeal marketplace.

7. Fanatics

Valuation - US $6.2 Billion  |  Country - United States

Image - Bizjournals

Fanatics, Inc. is an American online retailer of licensed sportswear, sports equipment, and merchandise. It was formed, 26 years ago, in 1995 and is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida.

Fanatics also operates the e-commerce websites of major professional sports leagues like NASCAR, NBA, PGA, UFC etc., as well e-commerce websites of major media brands -- CBS Sports, Fox Sports, and NBC Sports) along with 150 collegiate and professional team properties. They are also the exclusive online distributor for the United States Olympic Team and Paris Saint-Germain, a French professional football club based in Paris. 

8. Xingsheng selected

Valuation - US $4 Billion  |  Country - China

Xingsheng is Changsha,China-based community group-buying platform incubated by Rurong Xingsheng, a convenience store chain operator with a strong footprint in southern and central China. Backed by Tencent, Xingsheng allows consumers to purchase fresh produce and other daily supplies through a WeChat mini-programme, and then pick up the products from branded convenience chain stores in their neighbourhood.

In December, Xingsheng had closed about $800 million in a round led by KKR & Co.

9. GoPuff

Valuation - US $3.9 Billion  |  Country - United States

GoPuff is a digital delivery service operating in over 500 US cities through 200 fulfillment centers as of September 2020. Users can order items online or via the goPuff app and get the items delivered. It allows customers to choose from thousands of products like over-the-counter medications, groceries, snacks, drinks, and more. goPuff delivers directly from its own facilities.

10. Auto1 Group

Valuation - US $3.5 Billion  |  Country - Germany

Image - Economic Times

AUTO1 Group is Europe's leading digital automotive platform for buying and selling used cars online. By connecting buyers and sellers through technology the company enables consumers as well as dealers to trade seamlessly. Sourcing from all channels including OEMs and dealerships. AUTO1 Group owns business units like AUTO1.com, Autohero.com or wirkaufendeinauto.de. 

AUTO1 Group operates in almost 30 countries and continues to expand rapidly.

Snapdeal Founders' Titan Capital Leads $300K Investment Round in Credgenics

Titan Capital, a fund backed by e-commerce firm Snapdeal's co-founders, has led a USD 300,000 investment round in the start-up Credgenics.

Headquartered in Delhi, Credgenics is essentially a debt resolution platform that uses artificial intelligence (AI) and data science, and helps emerging fintech lending startups, NBFCs, Banks & SFBs in their critical NPA reduction using ingenious tools

The company will utilise the funds for scaling operations to cover all the metro cities in India, an official statement said.

Credgenics was founded in 2018, by Anand Agrawal, Mayank Khera and Rishabh Goel. Its SaaS based collection platform is integrated with legal workflow and delivers customised strategies which helps creditors efficiently improve their NPA, geographic reach and customer experience.

Launched in 2016, Titan Capital has raised over US$ 4 billion in funds from 100+ institutional investors, sovereign wealth funds and family offices. Its portfolio startups includes over 70 companies in India and the US across consumer internet, direct to consumer brands, SaaS, AI and Computer Vision.

Titan Capital last invested when it led ₹2.2 crore funding round of online content-managing platform - Pepper Content, in February this year.

Customer Ratings to Play a Larger Role in Sellers’ Sales on Snapdeal

Snapdeal - India’s leading value-focused online marketplace – is using data analytics to link the business prospects of sellers on its platform with the way buyers rates the products sold by the sellers.

Each buyer on Snapdeal can rate their purchases, rating them between 1-5 stars. The rating for each product, along with the number of users who have rated the product is displayed to all users on the marketplace.

Sellers with products that are highly rated by the consumers are more likely to have greater visibility in the search results, which mostly leads to more sales for such sellers vis-à-vis other sellers.

The platform systemically reduces the visibility of the sellers selling products with poor ratings and removes the sellers from the platform on account of repeated performance issues and violations of platform terms and conditions.

Commenting on the move, Snapdeal said, “The ratings and reviews by millions of Snapdeal buyers is the most powerful and authentic way of guiding users on the marketplace platform. Such ratings help buyers browse, assess and decide between various product-price options available on the platform. A direct linkage between current performance and future business prospects aligns the interests of buyers, sellers and the platform."

To prevent any misuse of the rating process, only buyers who have purchased a product can do a rating and only one rating is permitted per purchase.

Since the rating process also captures the number of buyers who have rated the product, it also serves as a valuable guide towards the bestsellers, which is useful for new buyers and is an important reference point in the purchase of unbranded goods.

Nearly 12 million listings on Snapdeal received customer ratings in the last 8 months. With this data-driven exercise, Snapdeal is looking at highlighting high-quality sellers and is also based on customer ratings, looking at weeding out low-quality sellers, including those who misuse the platform to sell counterfeit goods.

Snapdeal is among India’s top 3 largest e-commerce marketplace. More than 70 million users visit Snapdeal every month to browse and buy from amongst the 200 million listings by more than 5,00,000 registered sellers on the marketplace. Snapdeal’s focus on the unbranded segment has vastly expanded the options for both the buyers and sellers. Customers get a deep choice of affordable goods online, better than the choices available offline. The sellers also gain immensely by selling to a much larger nationwide audience, which is beyond the reach of their physical bazaars.

SoftBank may lead $100 Mn Funding Round of Snapdeal

Japan's Softbank has reportedly shown interest in leading a funding round of $100 million (~ Rs 711 crore) in Snapdeal, the Indian e-commerce firm run by Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal, reported several media outlets including CNBC-TV18.

The other investors who can also also contribute to Snapdeal's upcoming round include a clutch of smaller Chinese and American investors.

According the report, SoftBank will give half or upto $60 million and the remaining will be given by other smaller investors. "It is unlikely that any of the other existing larger fund houses will participate in the round," said the report citing an anonymous source.

Citing an another source, the CNBC report said, "Bahl did not believe that Snapdeal would see a day in 2018.” But, a lot has changed in the last two years. Snapdeal's revenue rose by 73 percent to Rs 925 crore, and losses are down by 70 percent to Rs 186 crore, in 2018-19.

Last month, Snapdeal raised funding from Anand Piramal, the Piramal Group Executive Director. He had invested in his personal capacity.

SoftBank, the report said, is convinced that there is a room for a third large e-commerce company in India after Flipkart and Amazon, especially after Paytm Mall's ammateurish attempt to get pie of E-Commerce market. Chances for Snapdeal’s success has gone up because of the fall of ShopClues, which tried to capture the longtail of online retail space.

In 2017, SoftBank had attempted a sale to Flipkart, which both founders, Bahl and Bansal, opposed and the deal failed to get sealed and eventually Flipkart got out of hands of Flipkart's founders' as Flipkart got acquired by Walmart.

Softank's failed attempt to merge Snapdeal with Flipkart led to a battle, where the founders clawed back control, reduced SoftBank’s number of board seats from two to one, and went off the radar to turn around the company.

Snapdeal Founders Booked for 'Fake' Products Deliveries

The police here have registered a case against Snapdeal founders Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal after a local Congress leader alleged that the online shopping site sent him fake products.

They were booked for cheating under section 420 of the Indian Penal Code after businessman Indermohan Singh Honey complained that instead of a Woodland belt and a wallet, he was delivered fakes.

Singh had acted as a spokesperson of the party during the recent Lok Sabha election campaign. He placed the order on July 17, paying online for it, police said.

In a complaint lodged at the city's Gumanpura police station, the businessman said he suspected the genuineness of the products delivered at his home, and took them to a Woodland showroom.

The staff there examined the products and said they were “duplicate and fake”, Gumanpura station house officer Manoj Singh Sikarwal said.

An assistant sub inspector has been assigned to investigate the case against Snapdeal CEO Kunal Bahl and COO Rohit Bansal.

Indermohan Singh has claimed getting a bad deal from the shopping site in the past as well.

He alleged that some months back Snapdeal did not deliver the wrist watch he ordered, while a message from the site claimed it had reached his home. However, he got a refund when he complained. PTI

Snapdeal Adds over 60,000 New Vendor Partners in 2 Yrs

E-commerce platform Snapdeal has added more than 60,000 new vendor partners in the last two years and the number of products listed with the company has increased by five crore during the period, an official said.

Snapdeal, which has recently raised long-awaited fresh capital from Anand Piramal, has a market share of only 2-3 per cent.The company expects to have a market share of 10 per cent in a few years, he said.

"Snapdeal has more than five lakh registered vendors who have more than 200 million products in the market. In the last two years, Snapdeal has added over 60,000 new vendor partners who have listed five crore new product on this platform," Snapdeal senior vice president (corporate communications) Rajnish Wahi said.

More than 80 per cent of the company's customers are from non-metro cities. So, the company is paying more attention to the customers who believe in purchasing value products for daily use rather than the expensive products, he said.

India's retail business segment is currently worth Rs 56 lakh crore, which will be worth Rs 138 lakh crore by 2025, he added.

He said more than 25,000 vendors of Rajasthan are selling their products through the portal. PTI AG RUJ

Snapdeal Raises Funding from Anand Piramal of Piramal Group

Once a billion dollar e-commerce firm, Snapdeal on Tuesday said Piramal Group Executive Director Anand Piramal has made an investment in the e-commerce company. The investment has been made by Piramal in his personal capacity, Snapdeal said in a statement.

However, details of the investment and the valuation of Snapdeal post the transaction were not disclosed.

Anand's investment comes as a significant endorsement for Snapdeal and the transformation the company has undergone over the last couple of years, Snapdeal co-founder and CEO Kunal Bahl said.

"His appreciation for what it takes to build a company with growing revenues with good economics in a competitive market comes from his own experiences of building and operating large companies in competitive sectors like real estate and financial services," he added.

Snapdeal, which at its peak was valued at USD 6.5 billion around 2016, had raised funding from giants like SoftBank, Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba and Canadian pension fund Ontario Teachers Pension Plan (OTPP).

However, it started losing market share to Flipkart and Amazon India as the rivals started pumping in millions of dollars to strengthen their position in the burgeoning Indian e-commerce market.

In 2017, SoftBank tried to orchestrate a merger between Snapdeal and Flipkart. Snapdeal, however, dumped the USD 950-million takeover offer from Flipkart and instead decided to pursue a fresh strategy - Snapdeal 2.0 - in the Indian market.

This strategy has helped Snapdeal narrow down its consolidated losses substantially over the last two years to Rs 186 crore in 2018-19 from Rs 4,647.1 crore in 2016-17.

The company has also been able to grow its revenues to Rs 925.3 crore in the last fiscal as compared to Rs 535.9 crore in 2017-18. Snapdeal's sharp execution in bringing great selection to the mass market segment in tier-II and -III cities has been quite successful, leveraging the growing internet penetration in these geographies, Anand Piramal said.

"Since 2017, Snapdeal's revenues have grown rapidly with profitable unit economics. With hundreds of millions of first time e-commerce buyers yet to transact, Snapdeal is well poised to grow in the future," he added.

The company has sharpened its focus on the needs of the value-conscious buyers in India during the last two years, Snapdeal said. "More than 80 per cent of its users come from the small towns and cities of India. This market of nearly 400 million potential buyers is the fastest growing segment in Indian e-commerce," it added.

In the last two years, Snapdeal has added over 60,000 new seller partners, and it now has more than five lakh registered sellers on its marketplace. PTI SR

Snapdeal Wins Against Fraudsters in Delhi High Court

Acting on Snapdeal’s complaint, the Delhi High Court has restrained various known and unknown entities from fraudulently using the trademark "Snapdeal".

The court’s interim order came in a suit filed by M/s Jasper Infotech Private Limited, which operates leading e-commerce marketplace “Snapdeal”.

In its petition, Snapdeal had asked for action to be taken against scamsters, who were mis-using Snapdeal's name to run fraudulent schemes.

The scamsters were found to be using Snapdeal’s name to invoke trust amidst unsuspecting members of the public and inducing them to pay money on the basis of false promises of expensive gifts/prizes such as Tata Safari cars and others. The fraudulent offers were extended through SMS, phone calls, websites and scratch cards etc.

As part of their modus operandi, the scamsters were found to be using multiple mobile numbers and bank accounts in a manner intended to make it very difficult for them to be identified without a very coordinated investigation and enforcement by various law enforcement agencies.

Fidus Law Chambers, which appeared for Snapdeal submitted that the offenders have been siphoning off the money from unsuspecting general public by illegally using the Snapdeal trademark and that Snapdeal has no involvement or association with any such schemes.

Taking into consideration interest of general public and adverse impact on the reputation of the plaintiff company, the Delhi High Court directed GoDaddy.com LLC, Endurance Domain Technology LLP, Wild West Domain LLC etc, to suspend infringing domain names.

The Hon’ble Delhi High Court also directed nearly 500 bank accounts to be frozen, which had been used by scamsters to receive funds elicited fraudulently. These accounts are in various leading banks, including State Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, United Bank of India, Indian Overseas Bank, Industrial Development Bank of India, Canara Bank etc.

As per a Snapdeal Spokesperson, "The mis-use of the names of leading companies to allure unsuspecting users is a serious industry problem that needs to be tackled aggressively. We have tracked and collated details and proof, including websites, telecom and banking channels used in recordings of fraud calls, details of bank transfers etc. and we are thankful for the Hon'ble Court's directions in this regard."

Apart from issuing public advisories, Snapdeal has been working with law enforcement and the government agencies to curb this nuisance.

Snapdeal's CFO Anup Vikal Resigns

It seems, there’s no end to the road of troubles for Indian ecommerce firm Snapdeal. After going through a period of tiresome acquisition discussions with Indian ecommerce leader Flipkart, which eventually fell through, the firm has now seen a high profile exit.

Anup Vikal, the chief financial officer (CFO) and general counsel of Jasper Infotech, the parent company of Snapdeal, has put in his in papers and decided to leave the organisation for greener pastures after completing two years of employment with the firm.

Vikal's resignation comes at a time when several senior Snapdeal executives have either, already hung up their boots, or are currently serving their notice period. The high profile list includes names such as Viraj Chatterjee, VP of engineering; Srinivas Murthy, VP of marketing; Gaurav Gupta, head of IT and Pradeep Desai, vice-president of product, among several others.

"Anup has done sterling work at Snapdeal, building high levels of governance and helping structure various transactions of importance for the company. He has led the finance function with distinction, contributing immensely in furthering the profitability initiatives of Snapdeal, which the deep bench of Snapdeal' finance team will continue. I wish him the very best for his professional pursuits," Kunal Bahl, chief executive of Snapdeal, said in a statement to Economic Times.

Vikal had joined Snapdeal in October 2015 from Aircel, where he was also given the responsibility of heading the telecom operator's finance operations. He is now reportedly planning to join Essar Oil, which was acquired Russian energy behemoth Rosneft, global commodity trading and logistics giant Trafigura and United Capital Partners in 2016 for a gigantic amount of $12.9 billion.

Immediately after the Rs 385 crore Freecharge-Axks Bank deal came to a close, Snapdeal founder and chief executive officer Kunal Bahl made his mind clear to the employees that he was not in the favour of being acquired by Flipkart.

In a letter written to his employees, the Wharton graduate wrote that now that the Freecharge responsibility is off their shoulder, it is now time to "focus energy and passion on continuing the Snapdeal journey." The letter was considered testimonial of the fact that Bahl still had confidence in Snapdeal.

The Snapdeal-Flipkart merger deal was being enthusiastically pursued by Snapdeal investors, following the cut-throat competition the company is facing in the country from global ecommerce giant Amazon and its domestic rival Flipkart. However, after inflow of cash from FreeCharge sale, Snapdeal decided to give independent run another chance.

This development was first reported in Economic Times.

(Image: The Indian Wire)

Snapdeal's CFO Anup Vikal Resigns

It seems, there’s no end to the road of troubles for Indian ecommerce firm Snapdeal. After going through a period of tiresome acquisition discussions with Indian ecommerce leader Flipkart, which eventually fell through, the firm has now seen a high profile exit.

Anup Vikal, the chief financial officer (CFO) and general counsel of Jasper Infotech, the parent company of Snapdeal, has put in his in papers and decided to leave the organisation for greener pastures after completing two years of employment with the firm.

Vikal's resignation comes at a time when several senior Snapdeal executives have either, already hung up their boots, or are currently serving their notice period. The high profile list includes names such as Viraj Chatterjee, VP of engineering; Srinivas Murthy, VP of marketing; Gaurav Gupta, head of IT and Pradeep Desai, vice-president of product, among several others.

"Anup has done sterling work at Snapdeal, building high levels of governance and helping structure various transactions of importance for the company. He has led the finance function with distinction, contributing immensely in furthering the profitability initiatives of Snapdeal, which the deep bench of Snapdeal' finance team will continue. I wish him the very best for his professional pursuits," Kunal Bahl, chief executive of Snapdeal, said in a statement to Economic Times.

Vikal had joined Snapdeal in October 2015 from Aircel, where he was also given the responsibility of heading the telecom operator's finance operations. He is now reportedly planning to join Essar Oil, which was acquired Russian energy behemoth Rosneft, global commodity trading and logistics giant Trafigura and United Capital Partners in 2016 for a gigantic amount of $12.9 billion.

Immediately after the Rs 385 crore Freecharge-Axks Bank deal came to a close, Snapdeal founder and chief executive officer Kunal Bahl made his mind clear to the employees that he was not in the favour of being acquired by Flipkart.

In a letter written to his employees, the Wharton graduate wrote that now that the Freecharge responsibility is off their shoulder, it is now time to "focus energy and passion on continuing the Snapdeal journey." The letter was considered testimonial of the fact that Bahl still had confidence in Snapdeal.

The Snapdeal-Flipkart merger deal was being enthusiastically pursued by Snapdeal investors, following the cut-throat competition the company is facing in the country from global ecommerce giant Amazon and its domestic rival Flipkart. However, after inflow of cash from FreeCharge sale, Snapdeal decided to give independent run another chance.

This development was first reported in Economic Times.

(Image: The Indian Wire)

GoJavas' Parent Company Quickdel Logistics Sends Rs 300-crore Legal Notice To Snapdeal

Indian ecommerce firm Snapdeal is in trouble again. The firm, which was on sale till a while ago, has sent a jaw-dropped Rs 300-crore legal notice from GoJavas' parent company Quickdel Logistics. Yes, it is the very same GoJavas that had raised investment from Snapdeal.

The notice was sent to Snapdeal founders Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal, and Jasper Infotech, which runs Snapdeal. Talking to Times of India (TOI), Anand Rai, who had acquired Snapdeal's stake in GoJavas and merged it with his Pigeon Express, revealed the reason for why the notice was sent. He shared that the notice was served when Snapdeal stopped doing business with GoJavas for the benefit of its logistics arm, Vulcan Express and "stole" some of the confidential business information such as data on employees and service vendors etc.

Snapdeal has decided not to take the chargers lying down and has termed the accusation totally baseless. Snapdeal earlier had a 49 per cent stake in GoJavas, which its founders decided to sell to Rai in a fire sale. The spokesperson from the organisation also revealed that the notice is in direct violation of the `Release and Settlement Agreement' executed by Rai and Quickdel on March 31.

"I've sent them a legal notice worth Rs 300 crore for criminal breach of trust against GoJavas which resulted in erosion of value of Quickdel," Rai said in a statement to TOI.

The notice sent by Rai accuses Snapdeal founders and the company of being in criminal breach of trust and siphoning off money from GoJavas to Vulcan Express.

The notice follows a first information report (FIR) filed by Jasper Infotech with the Delhi Police against the former promoters and directors of Quickdel -Praveen Sinha, Randhir Singh, Ashish Chaudhary and Abhijeet Singh, where it accuses the four of cheating, forgery, criminal breach of trust, conspiracy and criminal misappropriation of funds. The complaint highlighted that Snapdeal was "induced" to buy shares in Quickdel.

GoJavas' Parent Company Quickdel Logistics Sends Rs 300-crore Legal Notice To Snapdeal

Indian ecommerce firm Snapdeal is in trouble again. The firm, which was on sale till a while ago, has sent a jaw-dropped Rs 300-crore legal notice from GoJavas' parent company Quickdel Logistics. Yes, it is the very same GoJavas that had raised investment from Snapdeal.

The notice was sent to Snapdeal founders Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal, and Jasper Infotech, which runs Snapdeal. Talking to Times of India (TOI), Anand Rai, who had acquired Snapdeal's stake in GoJavas and merged it with his Pigeon Express, revealed the reason for why the notice was sent. He shared that the notice was served when Snapdeal stopped doing business with GoJavas for the benefit of its logistics arm, Vulcan Express and "stole" some of the confidential business information such as data on employees and service vendors etc.

Snapdeal has decided not to take the chargers lying down and has termed the accusation totally baseless. Snapdeal earlier had a 49 per cent stake in GoJavas, which its founders decided to sell to Rai in a fire sale. The spokesperson from the organisation also revealed that the notice is in direct violation of the `Release and Settlement Agreement' executed by Rai and Quickdel on March 31.

"I've sent them a legal notice worth Rs 300 crore for criminal breach of trust against GoJavas which resulted in erosion of value of Quickdel," Rai said in a statement to TOI.

The notice sent by Rai accuses Snapdeal founders and the company of being in criminal breach of trust and siphoning off money from GoJavas to Vulcan Express.

The notice follows a first information report (FIR) filed by Jasper Infotech with the Delhi Police against the former promoters and directors of Quickdel -Praveen Sinha, Randhir Singh, Ashish Chaudhary and Abhijeet Singh, where it accuses the four of cheating, forgery, criminal breach of trust, conspiracy and criminal misappropriation of funds. The complaint highlighted that Snapdeal was "induced" to buy shares in Quickdel.

Amazon, Flipkart, Snapdeal Violate FDI rules, Alleges Traders Body

The Indian ecommerce industry is in some serious soup. India’s traders body, the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) has decided to call out the ecommerce industry for the rules that its players are flouting in the disguise of sales and has urged the government to look into the matter.

CAIT has reportedly written to Union Commerce Minister Suresh Prabhu urging the minister to take serious action against ecommerce biggies like Amazon, Flipkart and Snapdeal etc. for disregarding FDI (foreign direct investment) norms listed for such players by engaging in retail trading activities. In the official complaint, CAIT has claimed that the ecommerce companies are indulging in a "blatant violation" of the FDI (foreign direct investment) policy.

CAIT alleges that Amazon’s Great Indian Festival Sale from 21 September to 24 September, 2017, Flipkart’s Big Billion Day Sale from 20-24 September 2017, Snapdeal’s Unbox Diwali Sale from 20 to 25 September 2017, Jabong’s Sale from 20 to 24 September 2017, Myntra’s Sale from 20 to 24 September 2017, and Shopclues’ Maha Bharat Diwali Sale from 20 to 28 September 2017 are all in violation of the guidelines issued by the DIPP.

In its complaint, the traders body divulges that the advertisements being carried out by these ecommerce companies for the last couple of weeks is an attempt of soliciting retail customers to their ecommerce platforms by influencing prices and creating an uneven level playing field in the industry.

Under the country’s FDI policy, ecommerce companies aren’t legally allowed to carry out retail trading activities, but ecommerce portals like Amazon, Flipkart, Snapdeal etc. have become such habitual offenders of the government policies that they’re circumventing the law by engaging in B2C (business-to- commerce) activities which is prohibited for ecommerce marketplace portals.

FDI policy guidelines dictate that ecommerce portals which have opened their channels for FDI can only indulge in business activities for B2B (business-to-business) business, meaning they have to stay away from undertaking any B2C (business- to-consumer) business activities. However, majority of the ecommerce players of the country have failed to adhere to this rule.

According to allegation levied by CAIT Secretary General Praveen Khandelwal, by inserting big advertisements in the mass media, these companies are addressing the consumers directly, something which is in strong contravention of the FDI guidelines.

He said, “They (e-commerce firms named) do not have ownership of the inventory of the products purported to be sold on their technology platform, how can they offer discounts or discounted prices on the products for which they are not the owners-questioned trade leaders.”

The latest development in the case is, that CAIT has charged Indian ecommerce players like Amazon, Flipkart and Snapdeal etc for violation of FDI policy for e-commerce of the Government issued on 29 March, 2016 by Department of Industrial Promotion & Policy, Ministry of Commerce.

Keep watching this space to know what action the government decided to take on the matter.

This development was first reported in India Today.

[Image: YourStory]

Snapdeal-Flipkart Merger In Trouble As Stakeholders Can't Reach Consensus

If you're waiting for the Snapdeal-Flipkart merger to take place with bated breath, then there is a good chance that you might just run out of air. According to latest developments, the merger is most likely to fall apart as a crucial meeting between the representatives of the two parties was recently quashed at last minute.

The news comes just a few days after troubled e-commerce marketplace Snapdeal sold its digital payments platform Freecharge for a whopping Rs 385 crore. The cash inflow from the deal can give Snapdeal the much needed breather it required to survive on its own, at least for a while.

According to a July 28th Moneycontrol report, immediately after the Freecharge-Axis Bank came to a close, Snapdeal founder and chief executive officer Kunal Bahl made his mind clear to the employees that he was not in the favour of being acquired by Flipkart.

In a letter written to his employees, the Wharton graduate wrote that now that the Freecharge responsibility is off their shoulder, it is now time to "focus energy and passion on continuing the Snapdeal journey." The letter is testimonial that Bahl still has confidence in Snapdeal.

The Snapdeal-Flipkart deal is being enthusiastically pursued by Snapdeal investors, following the cut-throat competition the company is facing in the country from global ecommerce giant Amazon and its domestic rival Flipkart.

Taking into account the feelings of Snapdeal founders towards Flipkart's second offer term sheet clauses, the Snapdeal board has now decided to let the company's stakeholders take a decision on whether they want to accept Flipkart's merger offer or not. According to experts, it is unlikely for all the stakeholders to take a united decision as even the seven member board of the company hasn't been able to make a combined decision on the issue.

Snapdeal founders are in favour of sustaining the ecommerce company, either on its own or by entering into a strategic partnership with Infibeam.

Snapdeal currently also have a merger offer from Ahmedabad-based Indian internet and e-commerce conglomerate, Infibeam on the table. Though Infibeam founder and MD Vishal Mehta has denied that any offer has been made but as we know there's no smoke without fire. Reportedly, Infibeam has even furnished a term sheet, which has valued Snapdeal at USD 1billion, which was the initial asking price asked for the e-commerce marketplace.

The troubled e-commerce player received a total of two offers from the Indian ecommerce leader Flipkart for an all-stake acquisition in July. Snapdeal rejected Flipkart's initial $850 million buyout offer as Snapdeal’s board felt that the offer made by the ecommerce leader undervalued their company. But, now it seems the board is not happy with Flipkart's second offer of around $900 million-$950 million as well that came around last week as they think it is still below their expectation of $1 billion.

It was also revealed that it is not a negotiation on just the financials of the deal anymore, Snapdeal isn't happy with the term sheet furnished by Flipkart as well as they think it is laced with a lot of 'hold backs' and 'clauses.'

According to a source close to Snapdeal, the ecommerce founders are currently leaning more towards the Infibeam merger offer as not only is the price good but they will also get to retain their positions even post the acquisition which is something Flipkart isn't open to negotiating.

Snapdeal-Flipkart Merger In Trouble As Stakeholders Can't Reach Consensus

If you're waiting for the Snapdeal-Flipkart merger to take place with bated breath, then there is a good chance that you might just run out of air. According to latest developments, the merger is most likely to fall apart as a crucial meeting between the representatives of the two parties was recently quashed at last minute.

The news comes just a few days after troubled e-commerce marketplace Snapdeal sold its digital payments platform Freecharge for a whopping Rs 385 crore. The cash inflow from the deal can give Snapdeal the much needed breather it required to survive on its own, at least for a while.

According to a July 28th Moneycontrol report, immediately after the Freecharge-Axis Bank came to a close, Snapdeal founder and chief executive officer Kunal Bahl made his mind clear to the employees that he was not in the favour of being acquired by Flipkart.

In a letter written to his employees, the Wharton graduate wrote that now that the Freecharge responsibility is off their shoulder, it is now time to "focus energy and passion on continuing the Snapdeal journey." The letter is testimonial that Bahl still has confidence in Snapdeal.

The Snapdeal-Flipkart deal is being enthusiastically pursued by Snapdeal investors, following the cut-throat competition the company is facing in the country from global ecommerce giant Amazon and its domestic rival Flipkart.

Taking into account the feelings of Snapdeal founders towards Flipkart's second offer term sheet clauses, the Snapdeal board has now decided to let the company's stakeholders take a decision on whether they want to accept Flipkart's merger offer or not. According to experts, it is unlikely for all the stakeholders to take a united decision as even the seven member board of the company hasn't been able to make a combined decision on the issue.

Snapdeal founders are in favour of sustaining the ecommerce company, either on its own or by entering into a strategic partnership with Infibeam.

Snapdeal currently also have a merger offer from Ahmedabad-based Indian internet and e-commerce conglomerate, Infibeam on the table. Though Infibeam founder and MD Vishal Mehta has denied that any offer has been made but as we know there's no smoke without fire. Reportedly, Infibeam has even furnished a term sheet, which has valued Snapdeal at USD 1billion, which was the initial asking price asked for the e-commerce marketplace.

The troubled e-commerce player received a total of two offers from the Indian ecommerce leader Flipkart for an all-stake acquisition in July. Snapdeal rejected Flipkart's initial $850 million buyout offer as Snapdeal’s board felt that the offer made by the ecommerce leader undervalued their company. But, now it seems the board is not happy with Flipkart's second offer of around $900 million-$950 million as well that came around last week as they think it is still below their expectation of $1 billion.

It was also revealed that it is not a negotiation on just the financials of the deal anymore, Snapdeal isn't happy with the term sheet furnished by Flipkart as well as they think it is laced with a lot of 'hold backs' and 'clauses.'

According to a source close to Snapdeal, the ecommerce founders are currently leaning more towards the Infibeam merger offer as not only is the price good but they will also get to retain their positions even post the acquisition which is something Flipkart isn't open to negotiating.

Snapdeal Board Okays FreeCharge Sale To Axis Bank

Troubled ecommerce company, Snapdeal has finally made up its mind to sell its digital payments platform, FreeCharge to country's third-largest private sector lender, Axis Bank, according to a report in the Economic Times (ET).

The sale marks the end of a two year long process where numerous buyers came forward to pitch their bid for FreeCharge. Jasper Infotech, FreeCharge's parent company which also owns and operates Snapdeal, had also been on a lookout to raise fresh funds for the payments provider so as to compete head-to-head with the growing popularity of Paytm in the country.

According to the ET report, the deal could end up valuing FreeCharge somewhere between Rs 385 crore-Rs 390 crore, which would be a steep plunge from the Rs 2,400 crore figure that Jasper Infotech paid in the year 2015 to acquire the company.

Founded in 2010 by Kunal Shah and Sandeep Tandon, FreeCharge was acquired by Snapdeal in April 2015 for a whopping $450 million. It is currently valued at less than 80% of that amount. The payments provider recently also received an investment of $3.38 million from its parent Jasper Infotech itself.

The report also revealed that an official announcement on the sale could be made anytime now.

Earlier in the week, we reported how global ecommerce giant Amazon had made a late $70-$80 million (Rs 466 crore- Rs 532 crore) bid to acquire the digital payments platform owned by troubled e-commerce marketplace Snapdeal.

While Amazon's bid of $70-$80 million was higher than Axis Bank's $60-$65 million bid but, it seems, their lazy attitude of getting on the train at the very last moment costed them the deal.

Prior to Amazon and Axis Bank, 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.

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 the ET report, not only has the Snapdeal board green lighted FreeCharge's sale, it has also given a go ahead to Flipkart's revised offer for Snapdeal and an official announcement on the same can also be made within this week.

The troubled e-commerce player received a total of two offers from the Indian ecommerce leader Flipkart for an all-stake acquisition in July. Snapdeal rejected Flipkart's initial $850 million buyout offer as Snapdeal’s board felt that the offer made by the ecommerce leader undervalued their company. But, since Flipkart wasn't yet ready to give up on Snapdeal, it made a second offer of around $900 million-$950 million.

Snapdeal Board Okays FreeCharge Sale To Axis Bank

Troubled ecommerce company, Snapdeal has finally made up its mind to sell its digital payments platform, FreeCharge to country's third-largest private sector lender, Axis Bank, according to a report in the Economic Times (ET).

The sale marks the end of a two year long process where numerous buyers came forward to pitch their bid for FreeCharge. Jasper Infotech, FreeCharge's parent company which also owns and operates Snapdeal, had also been on a lookout to raise fresh funds for the payments provider so as to compete head-to-head with the growing popularity of Paytm in the country.

According to the ET report, the deal could end up valuing FreeCharge somewhere between Rs 385 crore-Rs 390 crore, which would be a steep plunge from the Rs 2,400 crore figure that Jasper Infotech paid in the year 2015 to acquire the company.

Founded in 2010 by Kunal Shah and Sandeep Tandon, FreeCharge was acquired by Snapdeal in April 2015 for a whopping $450 million. It is currently valued at less than 80% of that amount. The payments provider recently also received an investment of $3.38 million from its parent Jasper Infotech itself.

The report also revealed that an official announcement on the sale could be made anytime now.

Earlier in the week, we reported how global ecommerce giant Amazon had made a late $70-$80 million (Rs 466 crore- Rs 532 crore) bid to acquire the digital payments platform owned by troubled e-commerce marketplace Snapdeal.

While Amazon's bid of $70-$80 million was higher than Axis Bank's $60-$65 million bid but, it seems, their lazy attitude of getting on the train at the very last moment costed them the deal.

Prior to Amazon and Axis Bank, 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.

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 the ET report, not only has the Snapdeal board green lighted FreeCharge's sale, it has also given a go ahead to Flipkart's revised offer for Snapdeal and an official announcement on the same can also be made within this week.

The troubled e-commerce player received a total of two offers from the Indian ecommerce leader Flipkart for an all-stake acquisition in July. Snapdeal rejected Flipkart's initial $850 million buyout offer as Snapdeal’s board felt that the offer made by the ecommerce leader undervalued their company. But, since Flipkart wasn't yet ready to give up on Snapdeal, it made a second offer of around $900 million-$950 million.

Snapdeal Founders Open To Plan B, Evaluate Infibeam Offer As Uncertainty Looms Over Flipkart Deal

According to a latest report in MoneyControl, the much awaited Flipkart-Snapdeal merger deal might have hit a roadblock for the second time. The report revealed that since last one week Snapdeal founders Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal have been holding one-on-one meetings with senior executives including heads of multiple business units to chalk out the company's plan for an alternative path if the Flipkart talks fall through.

The troubled e-commerce player received a total of two offers from the Indian ecommerce leader Flipkart for an all-stake acquisition in July. Snapdeal rejected Flipkart's initial $850 million buyout offer as Snapdeal’s board felt that the offer made by the ecommerce leader undervalued their company. But, now it seems the board is not happy with Flipkart's second offer of around $900 million-$950 million as well that came around last week as they think it is still below their expectation of $1 billion.

The MoneyControl report also revealed that it is not a negotiation on just the financials of the deal anymore, Snapdeal isn't happy with the term sheet furnished by Flipkart as well as they think it is laced with a lot of 'hold backs' and 'clauses.'

According to the report, a source close to Snapdeal has informed them that the the company is currently holding meetings on planning on how well can they execute Plan B for the flailing ecommerce company.

The merger, which is being deemed as India’s biggest consolidation in the e-commerce sector till date, is taking a long time to materialise as initially Snapdeal’s early-stage investor Nexus Venture Partners (NVP) was not happy with the payout being offered by the Tokyo-headquartered telecom and internet giant SoftBank. Snapdeal’s founders, Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal, along with a couple of other small and mid-sized investors, will exit Snapdeal as well. According to rumours going around in the market even Tiger Global is looking for a partial exit from Flipkart.

The merged entity was expected to give a major push to the current cut throat competition brewing between Jeff Bezos' Amazon and India's very own homegrown e-commerce leader, Flipkart. Reportedly, Bezos' has recently decided to spend a whopping amount of $5 billion in India to gain significant share as the e-commerce market surges in the Indian subcontinent. The company is working hard to get a larger share of the $30 billion Indian e-commerce market.

Snapdeal currently also have a merger offer from Ahmedabad-based Indian internet and e-commerce conglomerate, Infibeam on the table. Though Infibeam founder and MD Vishal Mehta has denied that any offer has been made but as we know there's no smoke without fire. Reportedly, Infibeam has even furnished a term sheet, which has valued Snapdeal at USD 1billion, which was the initial asking price asked for the e-commerce marketplace.

According to a source close to Snapdeal, the ecommerce founders are currently leaning more towards the Infibeam merger offer as not only is the price good but they will also get to retain their positions even post the acquisition which is something Flipkart isn't open to negotiating.