'No Rhyme or Reason': BharatPe's Ashneer Grover Denies Allegations

Ashneer Grover.

(Photo: TheQuint)

Ashneer Grover, BharatPe's co-founder and managing director, told Bloomberg Quint that all the allegations against him were false and that he was being "crucified for no rhyme or reason."

"Since the beginning of this year, I have been put through a lot of allegations. None of them have stuck," he said, adding that BharatPe has no governance problems.

This comes as an independent probe into BharatPe brought to light two instances of fraud at the $3 billion merchant-focused fintech startup, according to Mint.

Questioning Integrity of Board Painful, Says BharatPe

BharatPe in a statement on Friday requested restraint from stakeholders and the media and to "allow the governance review to take place in a thorough manner," according to PTI.

"The board in all its actions has followed due process in the best interest of the company. We would urge that the confidentiality and integrity of the governance review and board meetings are maintained by all," it said.

"We are deeply pained that the integrity of the BharatPe board or individual board members is being questioned time and again through misrepresented facts and baseless allegations," it added.

Ashneer Grover had reportedly said he was "arm-twisted" by the company's investors into going on leave and that he had lost confidence in CEO Sameer Suhail.

'No One Complained'

"No one complained, neither the bank nor any individual. No one claimed the audio, nothing came out of it," said Grover responding to allegations that he had used inappropriate language against a Kotak Mahindra Bank employee.

He said that the company could, under no circumstances, take his 9.5 percent shareholding away from him. "Ownership is sacrosanct, independent of an executive role," he said.

He added, "I think it was not my place to talk about Paytm and I am just paying the price for it." Grover went on voluntary leave till March-end, after an audio clip, in which he allegedly threatened and hurled abuses at the employee, went viral.

(With inputs from PTI and Bloomberg Quint)