Sachin Bansal steps down as director of Ujjivan Small Finance Bank

The Flipkart co-founder resigned for proprietary reasons as he moves to launch his own digital banking entity

Sachin Bansal has resigned as independent director of Ujjivan Small Finance Bank, a role he took up in May 2019. In a letter to the board members, posted on the exchanges on Tuesday, Bansal said he was stepping down in the interest of propriety and to prevent conflict of interest arising out of the fact that his wholly-owned firm Navi Technologies has applied for a banking license.

“Given an entity owned and controlled by me has made an application to the RBI for a universal banking license, I felt it was — in the interest of propriety and corporate governance — only appropriate that I stepped down from this role,” Bansal said in the letter.

“I take this opportunity to place on record my appreciation for the support extended to me by the Board during my tenure. It has been a sincere pleasure to serve on the Board and I wish the management of the Bank every success,” he said, adding that there is “no other material reason” for his resignation.

Ujjivan Small Finance Bank, which went public in December 2019, had roped in the Flipkart co-founder to advice on technology as it embarked on aggressive expansion. Since exiting Flipkart in May 2018, Bansal has been gaining experience in financial services and a stop-over at Ujjivan was part of the larger plan.

Bansal, who racked up a $1 billion from selling his shares in Flipkart to Walmart, is creating a full-service digital bank. Through his technology company Navi Technologies, he has bought financial services assets like micro-finance firm Chaitanya Chaitanya India Fin Credit, DHFL General Insurance and Essel Mutual Funds.

Navi Technologies is also the applicant for a universal bank license, which is currently pending approval from the Reserve Bank of India.