Walmart-Owned Indian E-tailer Flipkart Looking Into Metaverse, Web3 Foray

American retail giant Walmart Inc.'s (NYSE: WMT) Indian e-commerce arm Flipkart has launched an in-house innovation unit called 'Flipkart Labs' to explore ways to expand into the Metaverse and Web3. 

What Happened: The company said its innovation lab would enable Flipkart to test new Web3 and Metaverse use-cases with real-world applications, including NFT-related use cases, virtual storefronts and other blockchain-related functions.

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"Web 3.0 is poised to play a strong role in India's digital acceleration .. [it] leverages the best of the latest technology like blockchain for real-world use cases that can digitally transform businesses like ours," Naren Ravula, VP and head of product strategy and deployment at Flipkart Labs said in a statement.

Why It Matters: The move comes at a time when digital assets are under fire in India amid the regulatory crackdown. The country's exchanges for cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC), Ethereum (CRYPTO: ETH), and Dogecoin (CRYPTO: DOGE) have seen a steep fall in volumes. 

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Flipkart recently postponed its plans for a U.S. listing due to market uncertainty. The company has also boosted its IPO valuation to $60 billion-$70 billion from a previous $50 billion. 

Price Action: According to data from Benzinga Pro, shares in Walmart closed 1.28% higher on Thursday. 

Photo courtesy: Flipkart