India's Enforcement Directorate (ED) has sought detailed online sales data from smartphone giants Apple and Xiaomi as part of an ongoing investigation into alleged violations by Amazon and Walmart-owned Flipkart, sources familiar with the matter told the media.
The development comes as India and the United States edge closer to a bilateral trade deal, with New Delhi’s stringent e-commerce regulations remaining a contentious issue in the negotiations.
American officials have repeatedly called for greater market access for U.S. firms, including easing restrictions on foreign e-commerce platforms.
The ED, India’s financial crime agency, has been examining Amazon and Flipkart for several years. The probe focuses on whether the companies breached Indian laws by indirectly controlling goods sold on their platforms.
Under Indian rules, foreign-owned e-commerce firms are barred from holding inventory or controlling sellers. They are permitted only to operate as marketplaces connecting third-party sellers and consumers.
Local retailers have long accused these platforms of flouting norms by offering deep discounts and secretly favouring certain sellers, actions they say have severely hurt small brick-and-mortar mobile phone shops.
Amazon and Flipkart have consistently denied wrongdoing and say they comply fully with Indian laws.
According to three industry insiders and one senior Indian government official, the ED has in recent weeks reached out to smartphone manufacturers—including Apple and Xiaomi—requesting data related to their sales on e-commerce platforms.
The sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitive nature of the investigation, said the agency had also asked for copies of any financial contracts signed with Amazon and Flipkart.
One of the sources confirmed that Apple received the ED’s directive in March. While Apple, Amazon and Flipkart did not respond to media queries, Xiaomi declined to comment. The ED also did not issue a formal statement.
Officials have suggested that the phone companies themselves are not under scrutiny, with the information requests seen as part of the wider investigation.
"Eventually, if there’s wrongdoing, there will be monetary penalties [on e-commerce platforms]," the government official noted.
This probe adds to mounting regulatory pressure on Amazon and Flipkart. In 2023, India’s antitrust body concluded that both firms had breached competition laws by favouring select sellers and working closely with smartphone brands—including Xiaomi and Samsung—to launch exclusive models online.
The companies are yet to publicly respond, and the antitrust proceedings remain ongoing.
According to Counterpoint Research, Samsung and Xiaomi together accounted for nearly 33 per cent of the Indian smartphone market in 2024, while Apple held a 7 per cent share. Around 40 per cent of all smartphone sales in India now occur online.
Consulting firm Bain & Company estimates India’s e-retail sector will surge to over $160 billion by 2028, up from around $60 billion in 2023.
A 2021 media report, citing internal Amazon documents, had previously revealed how the company allegedly exercised extensive control over some of its top sellers’ inventories—claims the firm has denied.
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