India’s fashion e-commerce site Myntra gets $50 million funding ahead of potential merger with Flipkart

Bangalore-based fashion e-commerce site Myntra today announced it raised $50 million led by Premji Invest. The money will be used to “strengthen its technology, infrastructure and customer experience; and fund future growth initiatives.”

The Times of India reported last week that Myntra is in talks with Flipkart, India’s biggest general e-commerce site, for a potential merger. Myntra’s previous investors Tiger Global and Accel Partners are also invested in Flipkart. A final decision is expected in the coming days. The Times says Myntra would likely be kept as a separate unit.

Myntra reports 50 million visits on its site every month. The online clothing store sells nearly 50,000 products from 600 name brands and offers a 30-day return policy and cash-on-delivery payment.

The latest funding round brings Myntra’s total investment to about $75 million to date. It aims to be “the largest fashion destination in India” by 2016.

India’s $3.1 billion e-commerce market is expected to grow by over seven times to $22 billion in five years excluding online travel, according to Hong Kong-based investment bank CLSA.

(Editing by Josh Horwitz)