eBay vs Flipkart: Founders, CEOs and History
eBay was founded in 1995 by Pierre Omidyar and is led by Jamie Iannone. Flipkart was founded in 2007 by Sachin Bansal, Binny Bansal and is led by Kalyan Krishnamurthy.
Company facts
Founders
eBay
Pierre Omidyar
eBay possesses one of the most famous, founding stories in the history of the early dot-com boom, rooted in the chaotic, unproven nature of the early commercial internet.
Flipkart
Sachin Bansal
Sachin Bansal co-founded Flipkart in 2007 alongside Binny Bansal (no relation). Operating initially out of an apartment in Bangalore, they launched the company by selling books online.
Binny Bansal
Binny Bansal co-founded Flipkart in 2007. Serving as the Chief Operating Officer, he designed the underlying supply chain and logistics infrastructure (eKart) that allowed Flipkart to reliably deliver goods across India's notoriously difficult terrain.
CEOs and their tenures
eBay
- Meg Whitman1998–2008
Former President and CEO
Whitman's decade of leadership is widely regarded as the golden era of the company's expansion.
Source - John Donahoe2008–2015
President and CEO
Donahoe repositioned eBay around mobile and omnichannel commerce and completed the PayPal separation in July 2015, creating two independent public companies.
Source - Devin Wenig2015–2019
President and CEO
Under Wenig eBay concentrated on its marketplace and sold StubHub in 2019. He left the company in 2019 and Jamie Iannone later became chief executive.
Source - Jamie Iannone2020–present
Chief Executive Officer
Iannone's strategic vision provided much-needed focus and discipline, stabilizing the company's market position.
Source
Flipkart
- Sachin Bansal2007–2016
Co-founder & former CEO
An IIT Delhi computer science graduate and former Amazon software engineer, Bansal laid the foundational infrastructure for India's modern internet economy.
Source - Binny Bansal2016–2017
Co-founder & former Group CEO
Binny Bansal was instrumental in engineering Ekart's national logistics network before transitioning to Group CEO during Flipkart's historic transaction with Walmart.
Source - Kalyan Krishnamurthy2017–present
CEO
A former Tiger Global managing director with an MBA from UIUC, Krishnamurthy's execution prowess solidified Flipkart's position as India's leading digital retail ecosystem.
Source - Ravi Iyer2019–present
Chief Financial Officer, Flipkart
As Senior Vice President of Corporate Finance, he manages the incredibly complex capital requirements for Flipkart's ongoing, brutal price war against Amazon India.
Source
Timeline: eBay and Flipkart side by side
1995eBay
AuctionWeb Founded
Pierre Omidyar launches the online auction site that becomes eBay.
1998eBay
IPO
eBay goes public as online auctions become mainstream internet commerce.
1998eBay
Meg Whitman becomes CEO
Meg Whitman became CEO of eBay in 1998. Whitman's decade of leadership is widely regarded as the golden era of the company's expansion.
2002eBay
PayPal Acquisition
eBay acquires PayPal, strengthening online payments for marketplace transactions.
2005eBay
Acquired Skype
eBay acquired Skype for $2.6 billion. eBay acquired the internet telephony company Skype for $2.6 billion in a controversial deal intended to integrate voice communication into the marketplace, based on the flawed assumption that buyers and sellers wanted to n…
2007eBay
Acquired StubHub
eBay acquired StubHub for $315 million. eBay acquired the online ticketing platform StubHub for $315 million to gain a dominant position in the secondary market for live event tickets, a high-margin, high-frequency category that complemented the company's core…
2007Flipkart
Flipkart founded in Bengaluru by Sachin Bansal and Binny Bansal as an online bookstore.
2008eBay
John Donahoe Becomes CEO
John Donahoe succeeded Meg Whitman as eBay chief executive in 2008.
2009Flipkart
Accel India invests $1 million in seed capital, accelerating tech infrastructure and marketing.
2010Flipkart
Flipkart pioneers Cash on Delivery (COD), sparking large consumer trust and transaction growth.
2011eBay
GSI Commerce Acquired
eBay bought the e-commerce services company GSI Commerce in 2011 for about $2.4 billion.
2014Flipkart
Launches inaugural Big Billion Days festival and acquires premier fashion marketplace Myntra for $300M.
2015eBay
PayPal Spin-Off
PayPal separates from eBay, leaving eBay focused on the core marketplace.
2016Flipkart
Acquires UPI payments startup PhonePe, integrating mobile payments across its commerce ecosystem.
2017Flipkart
Kalyan Krishnamurthy becomes CEO; Flipkart raises $1.4 billion from Tencent, eBay and Microsoft, then $2.5 billion from SoftBank Vision Fund.
2018Flipkart
Walmart acquires a 77% controlling stake for $16 billion, its largest acquisition ever.
2020eBay
Jamie Iannone Becomes CEO
Iannone begins a strategy centered on focus categories and marketplace quality.
2021Flipkart
Acquires travel platform Cleartrip; raises $3.6 billion at a $37.6 billion valuation.
2022Flipkart
Completes the separation of PhonePe into an independent company, with both remaining under Walmart majority ownership.
2024Flipkart
Raises about $1 billion in a Walmart-led round including Google at a roughly $36 billion valuation; launches Flipkart Minutes quick commerce in August.
2025eBay
FY2025 Marketplace Scale
eBay reports $11.100B revenue, 135M active buyers, and nearly $80B GMV.
2025Flipkart
Flipkart India reports FY2025 revenue of ~$9.6 billion (₹82,787 crore) (+17.3%) and a ~$602 million (₹5,189 crore) loss; marketplace arm Flipkart Internet cuts its loss 37%.
2026eBay
Depop Acquisition Closes
eBay completes its roughly $1.2B cash purchase of Depop from Etsy, adding a Gen Z and Millennial fashion resale marketplace.
2026Flipkart
Completes reverse flip of its holding company from Singapore to India in March; a July employee buyback values Flipkart at about $38.2 billion as it prepares for an Indian IPO.
Acquisitions
Flipkart
- Cleartrip2021$40M
- eBay India2017Undisclosed
- Jabong2016$70M
- Myntra2014$300M
Questions about eBay vs Flipkart
Who is the CEO of eBay Inc. and Flipkart?
eBay Inc. is led by Jamie Iannone and Flipkart is led by Kalyan Krishnamurthy. Both serve as the top executive responsible for the company's strategy, operations, and financial performance.
When was eBay Inc. founded vs Flipkart?
eBay Inc. was founded in 1995 — 12 years before Flipkart, which was founded in 2007. eBay Inc.'s longer operating history gives it a deeper track record but also potentially more institutional inertia compared to the younger Flipkart.
How many employees does eBay Inc. have compared to Flipkart?
eBay Inc. employs approximately 12,300 people, while Flipkart employs approximately 45,000. Flipkart has the larger workforce at 45,000 employees, compared to eBay Inc.'s 12,300. A higher headcount does not necessarily imply greater efficiency — it often reflects differences in business model (e.g., manufacturing vs. software).
Where are eBay Inc. and Flipkart headquartered?
eBay Inc. is headquartered in United States and Flipkart is headquartered in India. Their different home markets mean they may face different regulatory frameworks, tax regimes, and currency exposure.
Who founded eBay Inc. and Flipkart?
eBay Inc. was founded by Pierre Omidyar. Flipkart was founded by Sachin Bansal, Binny Bansal.
Which company has a longer operating history — eBay Inc. or Flipkart?
eBay Inc. has been operating for approximately 31 years, making it the more established of the two companies. Flipkart has been in operation for around 19 years. A longer operating history often signals greater institutional resilience and brand recognition, though it can also mean slower adaptation to new market conditions.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the eBay vs Flipkart overview