Walmart Orders Probe into Flipkart Over Alleged Employee Kickbacks
Walmart has initiated a probe into alleged kickbacks of over INR 150 crore by employees at Flipkart, according to whistleblower reports. Vendors were allegedly bribing employees in the smartphone and luggage divisions with favours in exchange for favourable marketplace treatment.
According to reports, in response to whistleblower concerns, Walmart has begun investigating allegations of misconduct at Flipkart. More than INR 150 crore worth of kickbacks were allegedly received by employees of the smartphone and baggage and travel accessories (LTA) divisions.
Walmart is presently investigating the claims, as it owns more than 80% of Flipkart. The scope and specifics of the wrongdoing are still to be determined. The amount that employees were taken will become clearer in the coming weeks as facts emerge from ongoing investigations, according to media sources. After that, Walmart will do what's required.
What Favours Walmart is Concerned About?
Employees allegedly accepted favours from brands in return for special treatment, according to the reports. Reportedly, some workers took advantage of Flipkart's B2B activities by pocketing commissions from vendors whenever gadgets were transferred between companies. As a result, these workers allegedly helped vendors boost their sales by making sure they were more visible on the marketplace. Walmart has reportedly investigated Flipkart three times in the past three years.
A little over 2.5 years ago, Walmart looked into allegations of theft from the LTA division. Consequently, three workers lost their jobs. A former employee of the smartphones division was found guilty in a separate investigation six months ago; he subsequently resigned and was sacked. The most recent probe into Flipkart's practices comes as the company faces a number of problems. These challenges include the departure of key executives, discontent among workers regarding the liquidity of their stock ownership plans, and doubts about when it would go public.
The exact date of Walmart's planned IPO of Flipkart is still up in the air. The corporation has lost fourteen VPs and senior VPs in the last year. Along those lines, in the case of a stock repurchase, over 1,000 former employees recently sent a letter to the Walmart board requesting equality with current employees.
Flipkart Ventures Invests in Two AI Startups, Alive and Keploy
On September 28th, Flipkart Ventures, the investment division of e-commerce titan Flipkart, announced that it has supported two AI startups, namely Alive and Keploy. Keploy is a platform for testing software built with native artificial intelligence, whereas Alive is an AI-powered platform for customised lifestyle experiences.
There was a lack of transparency regarding the transaction's monetary specifics. To aid in their development and growth, the participating firms will get access to Flipkart's wider ecosystem, as well as financial backing, strategic mentoring, and operational knowledge.
Both new businesses are building their offerings around artificial intelligence. Consider Alive, an Indian company that designs, builds, and distributes experiences using an AI-powered stack. More than five hundred live events in Bengaluru, Mumbai, Delhi-NCR, Hyderabad, Chennai, and Goa are available on the platform. In addition, Keploy can transform live application traffic into digital twin sandboxes and replayable regression tests. Businesses rely on Keploy for both mission-critical and production scenario replication in continuous integration and delivery (CI/CD).
