Salt-to-software conglomerate Tata Group is in the final stages of negotiations to acquire a controlling stake in bigbasket, an online supermarket backed by Alibaba Group Holding Ltd, with the deal expected to closed by this month-end.

Tata Group is looking to acquire a minimum of 51 per cent stake, while it could go up to as high as 80 per cent, depending on the price. Tatas are keen to invest a maximum of about $1.5 billion in bigbasket, sources close to the development told BusinessLine .

Alibaba owns 29 per cent stake in the company, while other key investors include Abraaj Group, Ascent Capital, Helion Venture Partners, Bessemer Venture Partners and Mirae Asset-Naver Asia.

The deal would be done through Tata Digital, a subsidiary of Tata Sons, set up for the conglomerate’s foray into the tech sector. The deal, if fructified, would also help Tata Group compete with retail giants such as Reliance, Flipkart and Amazon.

The Tata group and bigbasket declined to comment on the development.

Earlier this month, Tata Digital invested about ₹10 crore in the government’s rural e-commerce venture Grameen e-Store, in exchange for an undisclosed stake. The company would also get a seat on the company’s board.

Tata Group was also looking launching a super app, probably by the end of this year or early next year, will aggregate all services provided by the conglomerate — grocery, lifestyle, electronics, healthcare and finance — under a single omni-channel platform. The group is also looking at becoming a zero-debt within three years, in line with Reliance Industries, which become net debt-free in June.

Also Read: Reliance has emerged net debt-free, says Mukesh Ambani

bigbasket, which focuses mainly on private labels, had reached recently reached touched $1 billion run-rate in annual revenues.

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