Ashneer Grover's demands heat up fintech unicorn BharatPe boardroom tussle

Seeks removal of CEO Suhail Sameer from board, wants Rs 4K-cr buyout of his stake

The boardroom tussle at fintech unicorn BharatPe has taken a new turn with founder and Managing Director Ashneer Grover writing to the board of directors, withdrawing his nomination of Chief Executive Officer Suhail Sameer as its member, according to media reports. 

In an interview with Moneycontrol, Grover has said while he denies all wrongdoing, he will leave the company if investors buy out his 9.5 per cent stake for Rs 4,000 crore, valuing the company at $6 billion.

Last month, Grover went on voluntary leave till March amid concern about a toxic work culture in the company and growing murmurs about his abrasive relationship with investors and other board members.

“BharatPe’s last funding round was at $2.8 billion and all Grover’s antics over the past month are sure to have shaved off a large part of that if it was a public company. He must realise he will only hurt the company’s valuation by mudslinging in the public,” said a venture capital investor.

According to the data from Tracxn, Grover’s stake of 9.5 per cent in the company was worth Rs 1,915 crore based on the last funding round in August 2021.

Grover has alleged Sameer manipulated him into going on leave last month. 

“In the last round, he (Sameer) sold Rs 11 crore worth of ESOPs (employee stock option plans). I have created value for him -- real value, not paper value. After having done everything and giving someone full degree of freedom to operate, if you operate in a manner and side with the investors when I need you the most, then you don’t enjoy my confidence. Why should the puppet of the investors be my nominee on the board?” Grover is quoted as saying by the financial news website.

Sameer joined BharatPe in August 2020 as group president after a stint of four years at RP-Sanjeev Goenka Group. An IIM-Lucknow and Delhi College of Engineering alumnus, Sameer was elevated to CEO at BharatPe in August last year. He has worked for consumer companies (like FMCG and retail) and consumer technology firms, and with institutional investors, an earlier statement from the fintech company said.

Sameer declined to comment on the issue. Grover did not respond to Business Standard’s queries and calls. Sequoia Capital, which is the largest shareholder in BharatPe with a 19.6 per cent stake, also declined to comment on the matter.