Flipkart B2B arm’s FY22 loss widens to Rs 3,404 crore

By Aman Rawat

  • 01 Nov 2022
Credit: Reuters

Flipkart India Pvt. Limited, the B2B (business-to-business) vertical of the Walmart-owned company, reported a loss of Rs 3,404 crore for the FY22, higher than Rs 2,445 crore loss during FY21. 

Flipkart India posted an 18.7% growth y-o-y in its operating revenue to Rs 50,993 crore, according to data accessed by the business intelligence platform Tofler. In comparison, Amazon’s wholesale unit, Amazon Wholesale India, saw its operating revenue grow 27% to Rs 4,592 crore for the financial year ended 31 March 2022.

Flipkart India primarily makes money from the sale of goods, B2B marketplace services, and logistics services. The company’s income from the sale of goods stood at Rs 50,709 crore in FY22, while it earned Rs 283 crore via services. 

Total expenses stood at Rs 54,580 crore for the period under review, up 19.2% versus Rs 45,801 crore in FY21. It spent Rs 53,878 crore on purchases of stock-in-trade, which is lower than its revenues. In FY21, it spent Rs 47,629 crore to procure the goods.

Flipkart India said in its financial report that the company offers volume discounts to customers based on the targets achieved. “In accounting for these volume discounts, the company records the estimated volume discount as a reduction of revenue as sales take place throughout the year,” it said. 

Meanwhile, employee benefits expense stood at Rs 6,274 crore in FY22, up from Rs 3,850 crore in the previous fiscal. Finance and legal charges increased to Rs 141.5 crore and Rs 36.5 crore, respectively. 

Flipkart India runs Flipkart Wholesale platform where businesses can buy fashion, grocery, and general merchandise in bulk. The company has partnered with brands like Surf Excel, Maggi, Aashirvaad, Coca-Cola, Dove, Sparx, Jockey and more. 

Meanwhile, last week, Flipkart’s online marketplace arm, Flipkart Internet Pvt. Ltd, posted a 31% year-on-year jump in its revenues to Rs 10,659 crore for FY22. The company, however, saw its net loss widen to Rs 4,362 crore during the fiscal on the back of rising transportation, marketing and legal charges.

Flipkart is considering raising $2-3 billion at a valuation of more than $40 billion to expand its product range in India and challenge rivals, Mint reported last week.

The e-commerce major last raised around $3.6 billion in July 2021 and has deployed most of the capital, with only $700-800 million left, the report said. A Flipkart spokeswoman, however, said there are no such plans at the moment.