Walmart Cleared for $16 Billion Flipkart Acquisition

American grocery giant Walmart has been given the green light to buy Indian online marketplace Flipkart, a move which will see it ramp up its rivalry with Amazon.

Walmart will purchase a 77 percent stake in the firm for around $16 billion, the largest deal to date in India's ecommerce industry.

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) cleared the deal despite opposition from the Confederation of India Traders, which said the acquisition would lead to convenience stores being put out of business.

Walmart commented on the CCI decision in a statement: “We believe that the combination of Walmart's

global expertise and Flipkart will position us for long-term success and enable us to contribute to the economic growth.”

In other Walmart developments, an agreement has been made with JD.com to invest in $500 million in Chinese online food delivery company Dada-JD Daojia.