• Reuters, Wednesday, December 5, 2012 9:53 AM

Big Box Walmart made a $100 million investment into a consultancy with no employees, and just $14,000 in revenue. A consultancy? It began as Bharti Retail Holdings Ltd, according to documents filed with India's Registrar of Companies. Then four months later, after India opened its market to global investors, Walmart swapped out that name for Cedar Support Services. It may have broken foreign direct investment rules by putting money into a retailer before the government threw open the sector to global players. Cedar Support Services is not to be confused with Cedar Lake, the NYC ballet company owned by Walmart gazillionaire heiress and dance hobbyist Nancy Walton Laurie.

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