Binny Bansal Seeks $100 Mn As Part Of Early Exit Deal With Walmart

Flipkart cofounder Binny Bansal is negotiating terms of his exit and may reportedly opt for an immediate cash payout of $100 Mn (INR 701.5 Cr) from his $850 Mn (INR 5,963.47 Cr) worth-exit from the Walmart-owned company.

A media report, citing sources aware of the development, said that Binny would have received $850 Mn in cash from Walmart for his 4-4.5% stake in Flipkart after August 2020. However, since he tendered his resignation in November, he is eligible for an immediate but smaller payment of about $100 Mn and the rest would be due by August 2020.

Also, notably, after the buyout in 2020, Binny will continue to keep his remaining stock of Flipkart.

Binny made a sudden exit from Flipkart after an allegation of “serious personal misconduct” came to light in November. Even though the following investigation did not find any evidence to support the allegation, Walmart said there were “lapses in judgement” on how the situation was handled.

After his exit, Binny filed a complaint against the accuser, who in turn, went back on her allegations and the case was closed, with Binny holding the right to reopen the case if need be. With a clean chit, Binny’s reinstatement in Flipkart seemed like a possibility.

However, less than month since the exit, reports have emerged that Binny may be launching his next startup — XTo10X — along with his friend, Saikiran Krishnamurthy, offering technology tools, learning and consulting services to growth-stage startups which are looking to scale up.

Coupled with the current report of his exit deal, Binny’s re-entry into Flipkart seems like a farcry.

Soon after Binnys exit, parent company Walmart increased its stake from 77% to 81.3% in the company. At the same time, with both the founders out, Flipkart’s responsibilities went to Kalyan Krishnamurthy, who is now heading Flipkart along with its fashion subsidiaries, Myntra and Jabong.

Meanwhile, cofounder Sachin Bansal — who was was ousted from the company in May before the merger — is now looking to begin his second innings and is exploring sectors such as AI, agritech and fintech.

[The development was reported by Livemint.]