Flipkart in a flux, may opt to go public: report

Flipkart, which saw its CEO Benny Bansal replaced by Kalyan Krishnamurthy a day before, is set for further changes at the top level, with some of the top executives making an exit even as the country's largest e-commerce player is getting set for a full float, say reports.

A Hindu BusinessLine report quoting sources at the company said Flipkart's board has decided to make the company IPO-ready in the next two years. It would all depend on market conditions and the valuation of the company, the report stated.

This is also the natural course for a company wanting to establish firmly, say analysts. Some of the current investors in the company are also reportedly in favour of the company going public as that would assure necessary capital.

The new CEO Kalyan Krishnamurty has the task of shoring up Flipkart's valuation from around $7-8 billion to around $11-12 billion, besides running the day-to-day operations of the company, according to reports.

Krishnamurthy has also been given a free hand in running the day-to-day operations of the company.

Co-founder Binny Bansal has been tasked with the job of taking the company public. Freed from the chores of routine business operations, Bansal will now focus on building new businesses, M&As, leadership and CEO compensation.

Meanwhile, some of the top-level executives in the levels of senior vice-presidents, with key roles in different segments, are in the process of putting in their papers, say reports.

Analysts also do not rule out fresh bids by retail majors like Amazon and Walmart to take over Flipkart. Earlier, Amazon was reported to be willing to offer up to $8 billion to buy Flipkart while the investors and the founders wanted about $12 billion.

Walmart might also look at buying into Flipkart as it is fast losing ground to Amazon in the US, its home base, reports point out.