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Ashneer launches fantasy sports app CrickPe

Former BharatPe Co-founder and Managing Director Grover and his wife Madhuri Jain Grover launched CrickPe to grab a pie of the growing fantasy sports market…reports Asian Lite News

Ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 that begins from March 31, Ashneer Grover’s new venture Third Unicorn has launched a fantasy sports app called CrickPe that aims to take on Dream11 and Mobile Premier League (MPL).

“Biggest revolution in Cricket since IPL – only fantasy game paying cricketers for performance. Where you win, cricketer wins, cricket wins,” Grover said in a tweet.

CrickPe will levy a 10 per cent platform fee of the total funds received for any public or private contest.

It allows players above 18 years of age to create a virtual team of cricket players and enter paid contests to earn cash prizes.

“It is the only fantasy cricket app in the world where with every match, the actual playing cricketers, cricketing bodies and real team owners win cash rewards, along with the fantasy game winners,” according to its description on Google Play Store.

The online fantasy sports market is currently dominated by Dream11.

Former BharatPe Co-founder and Managing Director Grover and his wife Madhuri Jain Grover launched CrickPe to grab a pie of the growing fantasy sports market.

According to a report by the Federation of Indian Fantasy Sports (FIFS) in collaboration with Deloitte, India’s fantasy sports market is likely to grow from Rs 34,600 crore in FY21 to an estimated Rs 1,65,000 crore by FY25, registering a CAGR of 38 per cent.

India is the world’s biggest fantasy sports market with a user base of more than 13 crore.

Grover’s Third Unicorn has been building a “market shaking” business which is “bootstrapped” and “without limelight”, according to a recent LinkedIn post by Ashneer.

According to data accessed through Tofler, the Grovers last year registered the new company. The firm had a total paid-up capital of Rs 10 lakh and an authorised share capital of Rs 20 lakh.

Grover had said he was planning to start his own venture without seeking funds from the investors.

Delhi HC issues summons to Ashneer Grover

The Delhi High Court on Friday issued summons to BharatPe’s former Managing Director Ashneer Grover in connection with a case filed by fintech company’s co-founder Shashvat Nakrani over claims of unpaid shares.

Representing Nakrani, senior advocate Neeraj Kishan Kaul contended that in case filed by co-founder Bhavik Koladiya on the same lines, the court has issued summons and has asked Grover to not create any third-party rights in respect of the shares in BharatPe.

The High Court had, on January 18, told Grover to file an undertaking in a week’s time and restraining him from creating any third-party rights over the shares.

Appearing before the bench of Justice Sachin Datta, Kaul said that it is Grover’s stand that he has paid for the shares in cash.

The court noted that the case was filed about five years after the shares were stated to have been transferred while Kaul argued for an interim relief.

Lawyer Giriraj Subramanium, Grover’s counsel, was questioned by Judge Datta if he was prepared to make a statement that no third-party rights would be created over the shares.

To this, Subramanium said that he has instructions not to make such a statement.

Justice Datta then listed the case for the next hearing on March 28, on the issue of interim relief sought by Nakrani.

“Plaintiff has been heard at some length in the interim relief application. Counsel for the defendant says they don’t want to file a response to the application. List on Tuesday for further arguments,” the court ordered.

The judge also issued notice on Nakrani’s application seeking to file some documents in a sealed cover.

Koladiya’s suit seeking to reclaim trasferred shares remains pending before another bench of the High Court.

BharatPe(Photo:Instagram)

In the Koladiya’s case, when the court had earlier asked Grover to not create any third-party rights over the shares, he had informed the court that subject to further directions from the court, he will not make any third-party interest in the 16,110 shares that Koladiya transferred to him and in any rights that accrue to him as a consequence thereof.

A single-bench judge Justice Prateek Jalan had ordered that Grover will be bound by his statement and directed him to file the undertaking.

The court had also served summonses on Grover and the fintech company, giving the former four weeks to respond to the application for an ad interim injunction and two weeks for a rejoinder to the same.

The bench had noted: “D1 (Grover) is bound to the aforesaid statement and is directed to file an undertaking to this effect within one week from today. Reply to application in four weeks, rejoinder in two weeks thereafter.”

Nakrani and Koladiya founded the fintech company in 2017. In 2018, Grover joined the company as the third co-founder.

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Ashneer Grover plans to start his own venture

The letter was marked to company investors, along with Chairman Kumar, CEO Sameer and co-founder Shahshvat Nakrani…reports Asian Lite News

Ashneer Grover, co-founder and former Managing Director of fintech platform BharatPe, said that he is planning to start his own venture without seeking funds from the investors.

Grover, who along with his wife Madhuri Jain Grover has been stripped of all company titles over alleged “extensive misappropriation of company funds” and using “company expense accounts” to “enrich themselves and fund their lavish lifestyles”, said he will not go back to investors again.

“I wish to start my own venture with my own money and make it profitable,” he said during the recently-held TiECon-2022 start-up and entrepreneurial event in Chandigarh, according to media reports.

“I don’t want to go to the investors again,” Grover told a panelist, adding that his tussle with BharatPe is a “badly fought corporate battle”.

Ashneer last month threatened a legal action against BharatPe CEO Suhail Sameer and the board for his comments on professional networking platform LinkedIn against his sister Ashima Grover, along with seeking a resignation from Chairman Rajnish Kumar.

In a letter written to BharatPe Board, Ashneer said that Sameer should be “immediately served a show-cause notice for his despicable public behaviour and immediately put on leave of absence to manage the damage to the Brand of the company”.

The letter was marked to company investors, along with Chairman Kumar, CEO Sameer and co-founder Shahshvat Nakrani.

The Ashneer-BharatPe saga, along with some more such incidents (the latest is Singapore-based fashion-tech startup Zilingo) has brought corporate governance in the Indian startup ecosystem to the fore.

Alarmed at the recent fraud allegations at some of its portfolio startups, Sequoia Capital India has said it will continue to respond strongly when it encounters “willful misconduct or fraud”, and take tough action wherever needed.

Sequoia Capital India has said it will continue to have zero tolerance towards proven wrongdoing.

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Ashneer Grover’s profile removed from BharatPe website

Along with BharatPe, Unity Small Finance Bank, which is a joint venture between BharatPe and the Centrum Group, has also removed his profile from its portal…reports Asian Lite News

Fintech platform BharatPe on Thursday removed Ashneer Grover’s profile and photo from its website after the company accused him, along with his wife Madhuri Jain, of allegedly engaged in extensive misappropriation of company funds and grossly abusing company money to fund their lavish lifestyles.

The About Us page on the website now carries the names of Shashvat Nakrani, Co-Founder, Suhail Sameer, Chief Executive Officer, Bhavik Koladiya, another Co-founder and Nishit Sharma, Chief Revenue Officer, along with other senior executives.

However, Grover’s LinkedIn page still shows him as a co-founder and Managing Director of BharatPe.

Along with BharatPe, Unity Small Finance Bank, which is a joint venture between BharatPe and the Centrum Group, has also removed his profile from its portal.

Grover on Tuesday midnight quit BharatPe in a dramatic fashion, amid serious allegations of financial wrongdoings against him and his wife.

“As a result of his misdeeds, (Ashneer) Grover is no longer an employee, a founder, or a director of the company,” the company said in a statement on Wednesday.

“The Grover family and their relatives engaged in extensive misappropriation of company funds, including, but not limited to, creating fake vendors through which they siphoned money away from the company’s expense account and grossly abused company expense accounts in order to enrich themselves and fund their lavish lifestyles,” the company elaborated.

The board will not allow the “deplorable conduct of the Grover family to tarnish BharatPe’s reputation or that of its hard-working employees and world-class technology”.

Grover hit back at the Board of the company, saying he is “appalled at the personal nature of the BharatPe Board’s statement, but not surprised”.

In a LinkedIn post, he said that “it comes from a position of personal hatred and low thinking”.

Slamming the Board, Grover said in the post that it “can get back to working soon. I as a shareholder am worried about the value destruction. I wish the company and the board a speedy recovery. Please get back to your actual day jobs”.

BharatPe had earlier sacked his wife Madhuri Jain over allegations of financial irregularities during her tenure at the company as head of controls.

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BharatPe sacks Ashneer Grover’s wife Madhuri Jain

Global audit firm PwC was also roped in auditing the functioning of the fintech platform during the Grovers’ tenure…reports Asian Lite News

Full-stack fintech platform BharatPe on Wednesday confirmed it has terminated the services of Madhuri Jain Grover, the wife of its Co-founder and Managing Director Ashneer Grover, for alleged financial irregularities during her tenure.

The internal probe found misappropriation of funds during her time at the fintech platform. Madhuri Jain was head of controls at BharatPe.

“We can confirm that the services of Madhuri Jain Grover have been terminated in accordance with the terms of her employment agreement,” the company said in a statement.

Sources earlier told that Madhuri Jain’s contract has been terminated and the reasons for this are “misappropriation of funds and authorisation of inflated bills during her tenure”.

All eyes were now on the Grovers’ next move.

Alvarez and Marsal, a leading management consultant and risk advisory firm, is set to submit its report into financial irregularities at the firm during Grovers’ time soon.

Global audit firm PwC was also roped in auditing the functioning of the fintech platform during the Grovers’ tenure.

The newly-appointed BharatPe CEO Suhail Sameer recently wrote a letter to disgruntled employees, saying that there are some “serious allegations” based on internal complaints which are being reviewed and they must keep their faith in the Board.

While many findings of governance review are “pretty standard”, there are “a couple of more serious allegations”, he wrote, saying the review is still “substantiating the allegations”.

Sameer said that whatever the Board decides, it will be in the best interest of employees, merchants and consumers.

After BharatPe Co-founder and Managing Director Ashneer Grover, facing a controversy for allegedly using inappropriate language against Kotak Mahindra Bank’s staff, took voluntary leave till March-end, his wife Madhuri Jain also went on leave in January.

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