Snapdeal has acquired FreeCharge in what is being touted as the biggest startup acquisition in India. FreeCharge is one of the first mobile transaction platforms in India and competes with Paytm among other mobile transaction providers. Snapdeal has confirmed that FreeCharge will continue as a separate unit with no changes in the shopping experience. With this acquisition Snapdeal claims that it has now become the largest mobile commerce company in India. The deal is being estimated somewhere in the region of $400 million although no confirmation has been received so far. It’s a cash plus stock deal with the majority of it in stocks and only a small part in cash.
“Together we represent the largest m-commerce company in the country now,” – Kunal Bahl on FreeCharge acquisition
The partnership may potentially represent a perfect match as Snapdeal will be able to add mobile transactions as part of its marketplace. FreeCharge on the other hand will be better able to compete with rival Paytm who has built a full fledged e-commerce marketplace of its own. FreeCharge was founded in 2010 by Kunal Shah and Sandeep Tandon. It has been backed by top tier institutional investors including Sequoia Capital, Ru Net, Sofina, Valiant Capital and Tyborne and has raised over $120M in financing in the last 4 years.
With the acquisition Snapdeal has acquired 7 companies- Exclusively.in, RupeePower, TV-Shop, Gojavas and FreeCharge. Snapdeal further adds that it wants to provide a complete integrated experience and move away from traditional monolithic e-commerce. Snapdeal competes majorly with Amazon and Flipkart among other e-commerce companies in India.
