Reportedly, Tata Group is seeking to buy Indian online retailers. The group is in talks with the IndiaMart InterMesh Ltd., a business-to-business marketplace, for a potential stake purchase.
IndiaMart’s shares have surged to 142% in Mumbai this year, giving it a market value of about $2 billion. BigBasket is Tata’s potential investment targets though both Tata’s representative and Bigbasket’s founder have denied commenting on the matter.
Dinesh Agarwal, founder and chief executive officer of IndiaMart termed the rumours as ‘baseless’, “Any talk of IndiaMart being in discussions with Tata Group for investment or acquisition is completely baseless”
From Jaguar Land Rover to tea maker Tetley, Tata Group sells almost everything and is now looking forward to beefing up its e-commerce presence.
According to remote sources, Tata is also in talks with potential investors on taking stakes in a digital platform it is creating.
Tata aims to bring the diverse online businesses of its entrenched consumer units under one umbrella through one app on its digital platform, including Titan, watch showrooms, Tanishq jewellery stores, Star Bazaar supermarkets, chain of Taj hotels and a joint venture with Starbucks Corp. in India.
As Ambani’s Reliance Industries Ltd. had expanded into technology and retail businesses, it has added urgency to Tata’s plans. Asia’s richest man, Mukesh Ambani has raised more than $20 billion this year, selling 33% of his technology venture Jio Platforms Ltd. to investors including Facebook Inc. and Google.
