E-commerce major Flipkart is reportedly planning to invest around $15 million – $20 million for an in-house credit marketplace startup, two months after entering the personal loan arena in collaboration with Axis Bank. The project is led by senior VP Prakash Sikaria, who also leads Flipkart’s social commerce platform Shopsy.

According to an ET report, he is at the helm of creating a credit marketplace that will function as a separate entity within Flipkart and is expected to be ready by the end of this year or the beginning of the next. Flipkart is said to be working on several products, and therefore, the ecommerce giant will invest the amount over time.

The investment will be done gradually as the team is working on several products, and the platform is expected to be ready by end-2023 or early next year, said the report quoting the close sources regarding the matter.

Furthermore, Flipkart and its parent company, Walmart, Sikaria will also hold a stake in the credit marketplace. Even though the project may seek external funding in the future, the initial capital investment is reportedly substantial.

As per the report, the marketplace will offer an array of credit products, including personal loans of up to INR 5 lakh, where these products could potentially extend to external platforms and customers. Additionally, the credit marketplace is also being built with Flipkart’s backing as it offers data and patterns on buying behaviours of consumers along with existing gaps in servicing them

As per available sources, Flipkart is also developing an in-house underwriting model to streamline risk assessments ahead of loan distributions, and has plans to launch a third-party app for UPI transactions.