Flipkart India trims losses to Rs 244.7 cr in FY17

Flipkart India, the B2B arm of the e-commerce major, has halved its standalone losses to Rs 244.7 crore during the 2016-17 fiscal from Rs 544.5 crore in the previous year, according to regulatory documents.

Flipkart India -- under which the Bengaluru-based company operates its cash and carry trading/wholesale trading business -- saw revenues rising 18 per cent to Rs 15,569.2 crore in FY2017 from Rs 13,177.4 crore in the previous year, as per documents submitted with the Corporate Affairs Ministry (MCA).

Locked in an intense battle for market leadership against American rival Amazon in India, Flipkart had recently inked an agreement with Walmart.

Under the mega deal, US retail giant Walmart will pick up 77 per cent stake in Flipkart Group holding company that is registered in Singapore for USD 16 billion and the transaction is subject to statutory approvals, including that of Competition Commission of India (CCI).

As per the documents filed with MCA, Flipkart India reduced employee benefit expense from Rs 245.4 crore in financial year 2015-16 to Rs 166.6 crore in 2016-17 fiscal. Its finance costs also reduced marginally from Rs 10.2 crore in 2015-16 to Rs 10 crore in 2016-17.

The documents noted that in view of the continuing losses, the directors have not recommended any dividend for the financial year ended March 2017.