No IPO Yet: Walmart Wants Flipkart To Turn Profitable First

US retail giant Walmart has reportedly asked Ecommerce major Flipkart to put its IPO plans on hold and instead focus on achieving EBITDA breakeven before the end of FY27, according to a report by Moneycontrol.

The decision signals a strategic shift towards profitability rather than pursuing immediate public market listing ambitions, despite expectations of a large IPO from one of India's biggest internet companies.

The reported direction was discussed during Walmart CEO and President John Furner' recent visit to Bengaluru and his first India trip since taking charge of the role in February — where he met Flipkart's broader leadership team.

According to the report, Flipkart has internally set a target of achieving EBITDA breakeven before the end of the current financial year.

"Flipkart has internally set a target of achieving EBITDA breakeven before the end of FY27," one source cited in the report said. "This effectively means Flipkart will not go ahead with its planned IPO or even a pre-IPO financing round before meeting that target."

EBITDA refers to earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation and is often used to assess operating profitability.

Profitability Takes Priority

This is not the first time Walmart has pushed Flipkart to improve its financial profile ahead of a public market debut.

Reports last year suggested Flipkart's board had asked Group CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy to reduce monthly cash burn from around $40 million to nearly $20 million as preparations for a possible IPO intensified.

While Flipkart's latest FY26 financial numbers are not yet available, its marketplace arm reported improving financial performance in FY25. Flipkart Internet reduced consolidated net losses by nearly 37% to ₹1,494.2 crore in FY25 compared with ₹2,358.7 crore in the previous year.

However, losses at the broader group level remained significantly larger because of investments across multiple businesses, including Myntra, Cleartrip, eKart, super.money and Shopsy.

Walmart Delays Second India IPO

The move marks Walmart's second major delay involving an India listing after digital payments company PhonePe. Walmart currently owns 71.8% of PhonePe and more than 80% of Flipkart, giving it substantial exposure to India's digital economy.

However, the company appears to be under little pressure to unlock value quickly through public listings.

Walmart's own stock market performance has remained strong. The company's market capitalisation has expanded from roughly $300 billion in 2018 when it acquired Flipkart to more than $1 trillion currently. Shares have risen nearly 36% over the last year.

Competition Intensifies

The profitability push comes at a challenging time for Flipkart as competition across ecommerce and quick commerce intensifies.

The company is currently investing aggressively in Minutes, its 10-minute grocery delivery platform, which competes with services such as Amazon Now, JioMart, Blinkit, Zepto, BigBasket and Instamart.

Analysts believe Walmart's push for profitability may force Flipkart to become more selective with investments and prioritise businesses with clearer paths to returns.

Moneycontrol had earlier reported that Flipkart was exploring a pre-IPO fundraising round of $2-2.5 billion. However, Walmart reportedly expressed concerns internally that raising fresh capital could distract management from its profitability goals.

Despite the challenges, Flipkart continues to dominate India's ecommerce market. According to a recent report by ICICI Securities, Flipkart holds a 50-60% market share based on gross merchandise value and remains ahead of competitors in monthly active users with nearly 220 million users.