Binny Bansal: Binny Bansal resigns from Flipkart board citing conflict with new venture

Named OppDoor, Binny Bansal’s new venture targeted at businesses with a software services platform will help emerging ecommerce brands expand globally. The IIT- Delhi alumnus also sits on the board of PhonePe, which too has expanded into ecommerce with Pincode after separation from erstwhile parent Flipkart.

Walmart is the largest investor in PhonePe too, but the payments firm no longer has any relation with Flipkart after the separation. Binny Bansal also sold his remaining stake to Walmart, as reported by ET in August.

His departure from the board marks the end of the founding entrepreneur’s association with one of the most storied Indian consumer internet startups over the past decade.

A spokesperson for Flipkart confirmed the development to ET.

“Flipkart is in a robust position, with a strong leadership team and a clear path forward, and with this confidence, I have decided to step aside, knowing the company is in capable hands. I wish the team the best as they continue to transform experiences for customers, and I remain a strong supporter of the business,” Binny Bansal said in a statement shared by Flipkart.

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Kalyan Krishnamurthy, group CEO at Flipkart and a board member at the online retail firm, said he is thankful for Binny’s partnership over the past several years as the Flipkart Group has grown and entered new businesses.‘His insights and deep expertise of the business have been invaluable. Flipkart is the outcome of a great idea and a lot of hard work, built by teams committed to transforming how India shops. We wish Binny the best as he embarks on his next venture and thank him for the deep impact he has enabled for the Indian retail ecosystem,” Krishnamurthy said.

Bansal bids adieu

Binny Bansal is a frequent visitor to India and an active investor in local startups. He runs Three State Ventures–an investment fund–for new-age companies. He is also the largest investor in early-stage venture fund 021 Capital besides being a cofounder and investor in startup consultancy firm xto10x.

Few months after Walmart’s acquisition of Flipkart in 2018, Bansal had stepped down from his role as Flipkart group chief executive following a probe into serious personal misconduct, according to a statement issued by Walmart on November 13, 2018. He was, however, exonerated of the charges. Bansal continued to hold his board position at the etailer.

Bansal is estimated to have pocketed about $650 million during the secondary share last year. He had also part-sold his stake to Tencent during Flipkart’s $3.6 billion funding round in 2021.

Changes in cart

Flipkart is also going through its own changes currently and is trimming its overall team size by 5-7% amid the current macroeconomic conditions, as first reported by ET on January 8. The company, simultaneously, is raising $1 billion –of which $600 million has come from its largest shareholder Walmart already. The US-based etailer now holds 80.5% in the local ecommerce firm after having bought out stakes from Bansal, Accel, and Tiger Global.

Krishnamurthy told his employees in a town hall on Thursday about Flipkart being close to profitability and that it has also begun testing its own Unified Payments Interface (UPI) offering with a closed user group. Flipkart’s UPI service is expected to go live to consumers early next month, according to the current plans.

Named OppDoor, Binny Bansal’s new venture targeted at businesses with a software services platform will help emerging ecommerce brands expand globally. The IIT- Delhi alumnus also sits on the board of PhonePe, which too has expanded into ecommerce with Pincode after separation from erstwhile parent Flipkart.

Walmart is the largest investor in PhonePe too, but the payments firm no longer has any relation with Flipkart after the separation. Binny Bansal also sold his remaining stake to Walmart, as reported by ET in August.

His departure from the board marks the end of the founding entrepreneur’s association with one of the most storied Indian consumer internet startups over the past decade.

A spokesperson for Flipkart confirmed the development to ET.

“Flipkart is in a robust position, with a strong leadership team and a clear path forward, and with this confidence, I have decided to step aside, knowing the company is in capable hands. I wish the team the best as they continue to transform experiences for customers, and I remain a strong supporter of the business,” Binny Bansal said in a statement shared by Flipkart.

Discover the stories of your interest

Kalyan Krishnamurthy, group CEO at Flipkart and a board member at the online retail firm, said he is thankful for Binny’s partnership over the past several years as the Flipkart Group has grown and entered new businesses.‘His insights and deep expertise of the business have been invaluable. Flipkart is the outcome of a great idea and a lot of hard work, built by teams committed to transforming how India shops. We wish Binny the best as he embarks on his next venture and thank him for the deep impact he has enabled for the Indian retail ecosystem,” Krishnamurthy said.

Bansal bids adieu

Binny Bansal is a frequent visitor to India and an active investor in local startups. He runs Three State Ventures–an investment fund–for new-age companies. He is also the largest investor in early-stage venture fund 021 Capital besides being a cofounder and investor in startup consultancy firm xto10x.

Few months after Walmart’s acquisition of Flipkart in 2018, Bansal had stepped down from his role as Flipkart group chief executive following a probe into serious personal misconduct, according to a statement issued by Walmart on November 13, 2018. He was, however, exonerated of the charges. Bansal continued to hold his board position at the etailer.

Bansal is estimated to have pocketed about $650 million during the secondary share last year. He had also part-sold his stake to Tencent during Flipkart’s $3.6 billion funding round in 2021.

Changes in cart

Flipkart is also going through its own changes currently and is trimming its overall team size by 5-7% amid the current macroeconomic conditions, as first reported by ET on January 8. The company, simultaneously, is raising $1 billion –of which $600 million has come from its largest shareholder Walmart already. The US-based etailer now holds 80.5% in the local ecommerce firm after having bought out stakes from Bansal, Accel, and Tiger Global.

Krishnamurthy told his employees in a town hall on Thursday about Flipkart being close to profitability and that it has also begun testing its own Unified Payments Interface (UPI) offering with a closed user group. Flipkart’s UPI service is expected to go live to consumers early next month, according to the current plans.