Walmart Confirms $3 Billion Acquisition Of Jet.com

It was reported last week that retail giant Walmart was considering an acquisition of would-be Amazon rival Jet.com for about $3 billion. Walmart has been very active recently trying to better compete against Amazon online and it appears that the retail giant believes the acquisition of Jet.com is going to help in achieving that aim. It has confirmed today that it’s acquiring Jet.com for $3 billion in cash aside from up to $300 million in shares for the company’s founders and other members.

Walmart recently launched its Amazon Prime rival as well which offers free shipping on eligible items for a lower annual fee than what Amazon charges, granted that Amazon also provides Prime members with additional services like video and music streaming alongside free two-day shipping on eligible items.

Walmart is not going to be immediately merging Jet.com into its existing offering. The retailer confirmed today that even though it’s acquiring the company, Jet.com is going to function as a separate brand. They expect the deal to close by the end of this year following due regulatory approvals.

“The combination of Walmart’s retail expertise, purchasing scale, sourcing capabilities, distribution footprint, and digital assets – together with the team, technology and business we have built here at Jet – will allow us to deliver more value to customers,” said Jet.com CEO Marc Lore.

Adnan Farooqui
Categories: General
Tags: Amazon, Jet.com, walmart