Flipkart co-founder Sachin Bansal admits disagreements with Walmart over strategy, says my exit from Flipkart was ...

TOI Tech Desk / TIMESOFINDIA.COM / Updated: Apr 5, 2025, 11:38 IST

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Sachin Bansal acknowledged his dissatisfaction with leaving Flipkart after Walmart's acquisition, labeling it as 'unfinished business.' Bansal faced disagreements with Walmart's focus on short-term sales. He now channels his ambition into Navi, a financial services startup, still aiming to create a large-scale impactful platform.

Flipkart co-founder Sachin Bansal admits disagreements with Walmart over strategy, says my exit from Flipkart was ...

Flipkart co-founder Sachin Bansal has admitted that he was unhappy leaving Flipkart after its acquisition by Walmart in the year 2018. Bansal expressed deep dissatisfaction with his exit from the e-commerce giant, labeling it "unfinished business." Speaking at Startup Mahakumbh, Bansal recounted a conversation where Paytm CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma remarked on his unhappiness despite a billion-dollar payout. �?Paytm CEO) Vijay and I talked extensively after I exited Flipkart, and he jokingly said that you are the most unhappy billionaire I’ve ever seen."
Bansal, who sold his entire stake in the Bengaluru-based firm during its $16 billion acquisition by Walmart, admitted that the departure was neither planned nor desired. "I was extremely unhappy after exiting because it was not something I had planned�?it just happened,�?Bansal said.

Had disagreements with Walmart Board

He had co-founded Flipkart in 2007 with Binny Bansal, starting as an online bookstore. Sachin served as CEO for nine years and later as chairman. He explained that his vision for Flipkart extended beyond its state at the time of his exit, aiming to reach a billion people globally.

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Reflecting on his departure, Bansal revealed disagreements with the company board post-Walmart acquisition in 2018, believing the focus shifted from long-term investment to short-term sales events. After Walmart became the largest investor, there were disagreements between the company board and him over strategy. Sachin believed that Flipkart, under Walmart, had stopped investing in the long term and was focusing on sale events to drum up growth.

Sachin Bansal’s new beginning with Navi

After his exit, Sachin Bansal founded Navi, a financial services startup, driven by his continued ambition to build a large-scale impactful platform. While Binny Bansal also eventually exited Flipkart in 2023, Sachin's sentiments highlight his unfulfilled aspirations for the company he co-created.
“The goal was to take the platform that I created, or helped create, to a billion people at a large scale even globally over time. That’s an unfinished business that I'm still pursuing,�?Bansal said.

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