Flipkart goes for major board reshuffle ahead of IPO – Times of India
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NEW DELHI: Walmart-backed e-commerce giant, Flipkart Group has rejigged its board of directors ahead of its plans to go public.
Kalyan Krishnamurthy, CEO at Flipkart Group will be joining the board from next year along with other new directors, such as, Keki Mistry, VC and CEO at HDFC, two directors from Walmart—global CTO and chief development officer, Suresh Kumar and Leigh Hopkins, executive VP of strategy and development at Walmart International.
People close to Flipkart shrugged off the development as routine but sources said, this could be a preparation for the digital retailer’s much touted IPO which is expected to take place within two years.
Steuart Walton, grandson of Walmart founder, Sam Walton, Dirk Van den Berghe, EVP at Walmart Asia, Rajesh Magow, co-founder at Makemytrip and independent director, Rohit Bhagat will be exiting the board, according to a communication by Flipkart to its employees this week.
While Judith McKenna, president and CEO at Walmart International will retain her position as the chairperson of the board, US investor and former Tiger Global executive, Lee Fixel along with Flipkart co-founder Binny Bansal will remain on board.
The move which comes days after Flipkart spun off its payment arm PhonePe, will see Magow take on an advisory role, while Bhagat will take on responsibilities as chairperson on PhonePe’s board.
Bentonville, Arkansas-headquartered Walmart, which is the world’s biggest retailer by sales, had invested $16 billion in 2018 to acquire a majority stake in Flipkart valuing the company at around $21 billion. It currently owns around 82% stake in Flipkart along with other investors.
In July, Walmart led a $1.2 billion investment in Flipkart, which valued the company at around $25 billion. This was Flipkart’s largest fund raise since its acquisition by the US retailer two years ago.
Kalyan Krishnamurthy, CEO at Flipkart Group will be joining the board from next year along with other new directors, such as, Keki Mistry, VC and CEO at HDFC, two directors from Walmart—global CTO and chief development officer, Suresh Kumar and Leigh Hopkins, executive VP of strategy and development at Walmart International.
People close to Flipkart shrugged off the development as routine but sources said, this could be a preparation for the digital retailer’s much touted IPO which is expected to take place within two years.
Steuart Walton, grandson of Walmart founder, Sam Walton, Dirk Van den Berghe, EVP at Walmart Asia, Rajesh Magow, co-founder at Makemytrip and independent director, Rohit Bhagat will be exiting the board, according to a communication by Flipkart to its employees this week.
While Judith McKenna, president and CEO at Walmart International will retain her position as the chairperson of the board, US investor and former Tiger Global executive, Lee Fixel along with Flipkart co-founder Binny Bansal will remain on board.
The move which comes days after Flipkart spun off its payment arm PhonePe, will see Magow take on an advisory role, while Bhagat will take on responsibilities as chairperson on PhonePe’s board.
Bentonville, Arkansas-headquartered Walmart, which is the world’s biggest retailer by sales, had invested $16 billion in 2018 to acquire a majority stake in Flipkart valuing the company at around $21 billion. It currently owns around 82% stake in Flipkart along with other investors.
In July, Walmart led a $1.2 billion investment in Flipkart, which valued the company at around $25 billion. This was Flipkart’s largest fund raise since its acquisition by the US retailer two years ago.
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