Global retail giant Amazon on Thursday said allowing foreign direct investment in e-commerce will help in accelerating further growth in the $3 billion Indian online retail market.“We are already very successful but foreign direct investment (FDI) would make possible to spin it more aggressively,” Amazon vice-president and managing director India Amit Agarwal said on the sidelines of the Economist India summit in New Delhi.Amazon, which operates on a marketplace model in India, is betting big on the country and has announced investment of $2 billion to expand its operations in India.
Foreign direct investment norms in India do not allow FDI in e-commerce. Most e-tailers like Flipkart and Snapdeal follow the online marketplace model, where they connect sellers and buyers. Amazon, which launched its marketplace in India last year, plans to open 5 new centres across India in addition to its two fulfilment centres (FCs) in Mumbai and Bangalore. According to industry bodies like Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI), only 25 million of over 231 million Internet users in India transacted online (as of December 2013), taking the Indian e-Commerce market to Rs 62,697 crore.
