Barclays: No, Amazon is not "beating" Flipkart

By

Isabelle Crossley

Published
Dec 4, 2018

Barclays has issued a clarification to its recent report stating that Flipkart and Amazon India have the same run rate for the current financial year and Amazon is not “beating” Flipkart. It was the exclusion of Myntra and Jabong financials that put Amazon in the lead.

Barclays blamed “erroneous” media reports for the dissemination of information that Amazon India was beating Flipkart.

The original Barclays report stated that “Amazon took the clear lead in FY18.” Barclays has now clarified that Amazon India and Flipkart are currently on a similar run rate of $11.2 billion (Rs 74,511 crore) in gross merchandise value (GMV) for the current financial year, according to ET Bureau.

The investment bank has explained the reason for Flipkart’s lower sales total: “Myntra and Jabong are very high margin — so the exclusion of the business distorts the lagging data on profit/ losses of the Flipkart entity. Unfortunately, since Myntra and Jabong have not filed financials, we were not able to include the entity’s positive contribution to profitability.”

The original Barclays report stated that, for the 2018 financial year, Amazon India has a GMV of $7.5 billion and Flipkart lagged behind with a GMV of $6.2 billion on a standalone basis. The report also stated that Amazon India has a growth rate of 82 percent compared to Flipkart’s 47 percent. The bank has now clarified that Flipkart’s total excluded contributions from its fashion subsidiaries Myntra and Jabong.

A spokesperson for Flipkart responded to the report and said: “Our work over the years, and specially in the last two years, suggests that Flipkart is way ahead both in terms of revenue and market share.” Amazon India has not specifically commented on the report but has stated that it is the most visited e-commerce site in India.