Flipkart co-founder Binny Bansal on Saturday said he has resigned from the e-commerce group’s board of directors. Sachin Bansal, the other co-founder of the Bengaluru-headquartered startup, left the board in 2018 after a tiff with investors.
Binny Bansal, who has retained the rights to remain on the Flipkart board for as long as he prefers, cited conflict of interest with his new venture as the reason for the move. Bansal launched OppDoor, a cross-border e-commerce startup, late last year. OppDoor offers comprehensive solutions — including market entry analysis, demand mapping, inventory management, cross-border logistics and tax assistance — to businesses, according to its website.
The move also comes on the heels of Bansal selling his entire stake in Flipkart, which Walmart acquired in 2018 for $16 billion, in recent years ahead of the e-commerce group’s much-anticipated IPO, which is now scheduled to take place in 2025. On PhonePe’s board of directors – a position he holds – he has become a prolific investor in recent years, backing a number of startups including PhonePe.
“I am proud of the achievements of the Flipkart Group over the past 16 years. Flipkart is in a strong position, with a strong leadership team and a clear path forward, and with that confidence, I have decided to step down, knowing that the company is in capable hands,” Bansal said in a statement.
After leaving Flipkart, Sachin Bansal founded Navi, a financial services company looking to go public. In 2022, Navi filed paperwork for its initial public offering, but shelved the plan after market conditions deteriorated.
“Flipkart is the result of a great idea and a lot of hard work, built by teams committed to changing the way India shops,” Flipkart Group CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy said in a statement on Saturday. “We wish Binny well as he embarks on his next venture and thank him for the profound impact he has made in India’s retail ecosystem.”