# Partial FDI in e-commerce ‘almost worse’ than ban: expert 2026-08-22T13:18:32+00:00 | Business & Economy | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet Shanker Singham, President of the Competere Foundation, has said that India's partial opening of foreign direct investment (FDI) in e-commerce may be more harmful than a complete ban. In July 2025, the government allowed FDI in inventory-based e-commerce firms, but only for exports. Singham argued that this policy picks winners by favouring one business model over others, distorting competition. A report by the Centre for Trade and Investment Law and the Competere Foundation estimates that India's anti-competitive market distortions could cost the economy $173.6 billion over five years, or about 4.2% of GDP. Of this, $127.2 billion is attributed to foreign investment restrictions. Singham said the government should balance national security concerns against the cost of lost competition. ## Indian Opinion Analysis The government's July 2025 FDI relaxation is a narrow carve-out: it only permits foreign-owned inventory for export, not for domestic sales. This keeps the core marketplace model, used by Amazon and Flipkart, still subject to FDI bans. The $173.6 billion loss estimate, though contested, signals the scale of the debate. The real question is whether the government will next open domestic inventory-based e-commerce to FDI, which would directly affect existing players and India's retail sector. Watch for the next trade policy review or a finance ministry discussion paper on e-commerce FDI. ## Coverage - thehindu.com Leads with expert criticism of government policy, reports both sides, uses straight news style This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above. Tags: Competere Foundation, e-commerce, FDI, Shanker Singham Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/partial-fdi-in-e-commerce-almost-worse-than-ban-expert/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/partial-fdi-in-e-commerce-almost-worse-than-ban-expert/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes. How this brief was made: an AI model read the report linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/