New Delhi, Jul 14 (IANS): E-commerce major Flipkart on Friday began a "one-time discretionary" cash payment of $700 million to employees following its separation from fintech firm PhonePe.

In an email to employees seen by TechCrunch, Flipkart Group chief executive Kalyan Krishnamurthy said the “much-awaited compensation will be made today”.

“We have exciting times ahead, and as we continue to grow across businesses, I look forward to your continued dedication and determination to bring about the future that we envision and scale new heights together,” he added.

Moreover, a Flipkart spokesperson confirmed that the payout had been made, the report said.

In December last year, the two firms completed a full ownership separation in a deal that allowed Singapore shareholders to purchase shares directly in PhonePe's India entity.

The PhonePe Group was acquired by the Flipkart Group in 2016.

Besides separating from Flipkart, PhonePe moved its headquarters to India. In January, PhonePe raised $350 million in funding from General Atlantic, a leading global growth equity firm, at a pre-money valuation of $12 billion, while in February PhonePe raised another $100 million in primary capital from Ribbit Capital, Tiger Global, and TVS Capital Funds.