Chinese search engine company Baidu reportedly plans to acquire a controlling stake in Mydala.com, a leading e-commerce platform for discounted products in India.
According to reports in Indian local media, Baidu expressed an intention to acquire a majority stake in Mydala.com and the investment can reach up to USD100 million, which is about CNY630 million. Neither Baidu nor Mydala.com have commented on the news.
The reports also revealed that Mydala.com, operated by Kinobeo Software, is one of the largest e-commerce platforms that focus on the sale of discounted products in India. The company is currently seeking its first round financing between USD150 million and USD200 million. With six years of operation, Mydala.com is 44% owned by Info Edge; while most of the remaining equity belongs to the company founder and employees.
The official website of Mydala.com claims that its provides services in 209 cities across India, with over 100,000 vendors.
In January 2015, Baidu opened an office in Gurgaon, India. In addition, the Chinese company launched four mobile products in India and claimed in September 2015 that they gained 45 million monthly active users.