The sale of the partial stake will earn eBay about the amount it invested in Snapdeal for all of its shares, while still giving it the upside to earn more with its remaining stake.
eBay has invested in several Snapdeal financing rounds, including a USD 133.7 million round it led in 2014. But as interest in Indian ecommerce has skyrocketed, Snapdeal’s valuation has grown to a reported USD 5 billion.
It is not clear whether the stake was sold in the USD 500 million round Snapdeal recently raised from Alibaba, Foxconn and SoftBank, or in a separate transaction.
eBay will use some of the proceeds to invest in its eBay India website. The ecommerce industry in India is expected to grow more than 50% for the next several years, fueled by a new generation of people connecting to the internet for the first time on affordable mobile phones.
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