BharatPe board finally makes a stand against Ashneer Grover

The constant drumbeat of distressing news in 2022 — cash drought, potential valuation markdowns, faltering businesses and layoffs — has relegated the 2021 boom to being a distant memory. It’s happened before, in 2016-17. A cycle of excess unravelled as suddenly as it began, forcing startups to wise up. 

This time, there is an additional element in the reckoning across India’s tech world: companies face serious questions of corporate governance. And unlike in the past when boards and investors avoided hard calls, resolving things behind closed doors, a clean-up is being attempted very publicly.

First shots: Payments player BharatPe has moved court against co-founder Ashneer Grover and his wife, Madhuri Jain, over alleged financial irregularities. This is likely the first instance of an Indian unicorn suing a co-founder.

It has also filed for arbitration in Singapore to claw back his unvested shares in the company, Moneycontrol reported on Friday. The steps come months after it slung Grover and Jain out of the organisation.