E-commerce major Flipkart has said that it was not in talks with Alibaba or anyone else for a stake sale. According to multiple sources, the two had initiated preliminary discussions earlier this year. The talks may have fallen through due to disagreement on valuations.

When contacted, a Flipkart spokesperson said: “We are not in talks with anyone to raise funds. We are well-capitalised for the long term. We believe in raising funds when they are available and always at the right valuation.” Alibaba’s spokesperson declined to comment on market speculation.

According to sources, the Chinese Internet giant may have lost interest in the Bengaluru-based company due to disagreement over valuations. US-based fund house Morgan Stanley, an investor in Flipkart, had recently marked down the e-tailer’s valuation from $15 billion to $11 billion after the company failed to meet its 2015 revenue targets. Flipkart’s last fund-raise was in June 2015, when it received $700 million from Tiger Global Management, Qatar Investment Authority and other investors.

Sources said Flipkart has been in talks with Alibaba and a few others for the past four-five months to raise up to $1 billion.

Alibaba, which has invested in Flipkart’s competitors such as Paytm and Snapdeal, may raise its stake in Paytm as part of its plans to increase its India exposure. Paytm did not respond to a query. Alibaba is expected to chair a meeting on Friday to review Paytm’s performance.

Sanjay Mehta, CIO, Indian Angel Network, said that Alibaba seems to be bullish on the Indian market as there is no other market larger than India where it can claim a bigger market share.

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