BharatPe initiates action against former founder to claw back restricted shares

New Delhi, May 10

BharatPe on Tuesday said it had initiated necessary action against a former founder to claw back his restricted shares following a governance review.

In a statement, the firm said it would take all steps to enforce its right under the law.

In January 2022, the board of BharatPe initiated the corporate governance review of the company.

The company had appointed Alvarez & Marsal (A&M), a global professional services firm notable for its work in turnaround management and performance improvement; Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co (SAM), India’s leading law firm, to help the board and management with its governance review and PwC, a leading consulting entity, to determine willful misconduct and gross negligence by a former founder.

“After a detailed review of the above report over the last two months, the board of BharatPe has recommended several decisive measures that are being implemented,” the statement said.

These include a new code of conduct for senior management and employees, a new and comprehensive vendor procurement policy, blocking of vendors involved in malpractices, and regular internal audits.

“BharatPe has also terminated the services of several employees in departments who were directly involved with these blocked vendors. If required, the company will be filing criminal cases against some of these employees for the misconduct and act of cheating committed by them against the company,” it said.

BharatPe said it had registered the strongest quarter in its history (Q4 FY22) with four times growth in overall revenue.

“Going forward, we are tracking well to break even on our merchant business and further strengthen our consumer business,” the statement said.