Apr 10, 2017

Flipkart raises $1.4 billion, as merger talks swirl

Dan Primack, author of Pro Rata

Flipkart, an Indian e-commerce giant, confirmed that it has raised $1.4 billion in new venture capital funding at an $11.6 billion post-money valuation. New investors include eBay, Microsoft and Tencent.

Deep discounts: Flipkart was valued at around $15 billion in mid-2015, while Snapdeal once was valued at around $6.5 billion.
Bottom line, via the FT: "While the Indian e-commerce market is forecast to grow sharply, Snapdeal, Flipkart and Amazon India have recorded losses as they invest heavily on marketing and logistics in an effort to gain scale. In the year to March 2016, the latest period for which regulatory filings are available, Flipkart, Snapdeal and Amazon India made an aggregate net loss of $1.4 billion."

Why it matters: This news comes amidst what could be major consolidation in the Indian e-commerce sector, with multiple reports saying that Flipkart is in talks to purchase smaller rival Snapdeal from shareholders like SoftBank for around $1 billion. It appears that SoftBank is driving that M&A train, despite holding just a 35% stake in Snapdeal, per a weekend memo from Snapdeal management to employees.

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Updated 54 mins ago - Politics & Policy

Coronavirus dashboard

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

Global: Total confirmed cases as of 5:45 p.m. ET: 5,763,122 — Total deaths: 358,235 — Total recoveries — 2,389,735 — Map.
U.S.: Total confirmed cases as of 5:45 p.m. ET: 1,715,811 — Total deaths: 101,337 — Total recoveries: 391,508 — Total tested: 15,192,481 — Map.
Public health: The mystery of coronavirus superspreaders.
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1 hour ago - Politics & Policy

Minnesota activates National Guard amid fallout from George Floyd death

A portrait of George Floyd hangs on a street light pole in Minneapolis. Photo: Stephen Maturen/Getty Images

George Floyd, 46, moved to Minnesota to improve his life and become his "best self," but instead, he is dead because of Minneapolis police.

The latest: Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz declared a state of emergency and activated the state's National Guard in response to violent clashes over the past two days between police and protesters in the Twin Cities.

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2 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Trump signs executive order targeting protections for social media platforms

President Trump signed an executive order on Thursday designed to limit the legal protections that shield social media companies from liability for the content users post on their platforms.

What they're saying: "Currently, social media giants like Twitter receive an unprecedented liability shield based on the theory that they are a neutral platform, which they are not," Trump said in the Oval Office. "We are fed up with it. It is unfair, and it's been very unfair."

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