BharatPe removes Ashneer Grover’s co-founder title and equity

Ashneer Grover, a startup poster boy, was fired as an “employee, a founder, or a director” by BharatPe.

A fintech he co-founded and was stripped of 1.4% equity worth Rs 300 crore. After he and his family members were accuse of financial fraud. The promotion came just a day after he resigned.

BharatPe, backed by Tiger Global, accused the “Grover family and their relatives” of “extensive misappropriation of company funds. Added, but not limited to, creating fake vendors through which they syphoned money away from the company’s expense account. It went on to say that the account had been grossly abuse for people to “enrich themselves and fund themselves.”

Grover received an email minutes before midnight on March 1 inviting him to a board meeting at 19:30 on March 2.

Instead, he resigned at 12:05 p.m. on Tuesday. According to sources, the BharatPe Board of Directors took note of Grover’s termination of employment due to his resignation. As managing director and a director on the company board.

However, because he resigned without the approval of the board and majority shareholders. The consequences under the shareholder agreement have now been trigger, they said. Adding that this could mean the company is within its rights to claw back up to 1.4 percent of its shares.

Grover currently holds a 9.5% stake in BharatPe, while co-founder Shashvat Nakrani holds a 7.8% stake.

Sequoia Capital India is the big shareholder in BharatPe, with a 19.6% stake. Followed by Coatue at 12.4% and Ribbit Capital at 11%. When contacted, Grover stated that he was shock but not surprised by the personal nature of the company’s statement.

“It stems from a place of personal hatred and low thinking,” he explained. “I’d like to know who among Amarchand, PwC, also A&M has begun doing an audit on the ‘lavishness’ of one’s lifestyle? BharatPe, which has chartered a law firm and risk advisory advisors to conduct a more thorough investigation following allegations of financial irregularities, fired Madhuri Jain. The company’s head of controls and Grover’s wife, last month for alleged financial irregularities, including using company funds for personal gain.