To take on Amazon, Flipkart changed the way its management functions. Binny Bansal who was the COO of the company will be the new CEO of Flipkart, while Sachin Bansal will move on to be the Executive Chairman.

Sachin’s role will be more strategic in terms of giving direction to Flipkart, mentor the senior leadership of the company and look for new investment opportunities. He will play an active role in championing the Indian e-commerce sector and building the internet ecosystem, and represent the company in external forums. Sachin will continue to be the Chairman of the Board.

“E-commerce in India is going through its most exciting phase and Flipkart has played a pioneering role in shaping this very remarkable journey. We believe that Flipkart can play a transformational role in improving commerce in India and improve the quality of lives of millions of people across the farthest corners of the country. In this next phase of the journey, it will be our endeavour to fulfil this responsibility and prove that India can produce a world class internet company that can outshine any global behemoth. We also want to continue to play a pivotal role in shaping the internet and the commerce ecosystem of India,” said Sachin Bansal.

The new CEO, Binny will look after Flipkart’s operations and will be accountable for its overall performance. All the businesses of the company – commerce, Ekart, and Myntra as well as the corporate functions – HR, Finance, Legal, Corporate Communications and Corporate Development will report to Binny. “At Flipkart, we have come a long way in our eight year journey. Today, we are in a very strong leadership position with over 60% market share of the m-commerce market, 50 million customers and clear leadership in smartphones and fashion. The journey ahead is equally exciting and challenging. Flipkart has all the necessary ingredients of brilliant talent and great technology to win this next phase as well.  We will continue to build world-class customer experience, expand our supply chain infrastructure to reach all parts of India, drive innovations in mobile commerce and bring in disruptive technologies,” said Binny Bansal.

Mukesh Bansal will continue to be the Head of Commerce Platform, Flipkart’s core business, and will have additional responsibility of the ads business. Mukesh will also continue in his role as Chairman of Myntra.

While there is a lot of speculation on the motivation, but what prompted the management to take such a decision is yet to be ascertained. Flipkart, which is valued at almost $15 billion is actively preparing for an IPO in the next few years.