Vani Kola Steps Down from Snapdeal Board Amid Sale Talks with Flipkart

Vani Kola, the popular Indian venture capitalist who runs Kalaari Capital, has recently resigned from the board of beleaguered online marketplace Snapdeal, amid the rumours of its probable selling to the bigger shark, and rival Flipkart.

Longest Serving #investor @VaniKola Resigns from @snapdeal Board. #startupindia #startups @rsardana @sangwan_sujata https://t.co/jd0xa1BR3S pic.twitter.com/Nm4uTa68ZB

— BW Disrupt (@BwDisrupt) May 15, 2017

The regulatory documents sourced from data platform Tofler reported that Kola has already penned her resignation to the board of Snapdeal on 2 May.

“I regretfully inform you that at this juncture, I would be unable to continue to be a part of the board, hence, I hereby tender my resignation from the office of the director of the company and request the board to discharge me of my duties as a director of the company with immediate effect,” said Kola in the letter, as reported by Mint.

Also Read:Funds That Are Changing the Game for Women

In a quick summary of key events, on 11 May, Mint reported Snapdeal was approached through an informal offer by Flipkart of $1 billion in an all-stock deal, amid the fiasco between Snapdeal’s largest investor SoftBank Group and two key shareholders, Nexus Venture Partners and Kalaari.

On 3 May, it was reported that the board of directors of Jasper Infotech Pvt. Ltd had agreed to a distress sale to Flipkart, with SoftBank finally convincing Snapdeal co-founders Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal, Nexus and Kalaari to agree to sell the company to Flipkart.

With Kola’s resignation, it’s been clear that Kalaari is convinced to nod along for the deal with SoftBank. SoftBank, Nexus and Kalaari have to mutually resolve their conflict and to effectively pass on their cue for Snapdeal’s sale to Flipkart.

Also Read: Women-Led Startups Ratan Tata Invested In

Since the e-commerce firm Snapdeal is struggling to make enough sell for the digital company to run along, all three shareholders’ principal agreement is not surprising. Besides the conflicts and differences are still yet to be resolved.

Kola brings her more than 20 years of experience from Silicon Valley as the founder of successful companies and she does full justice to her role as an investor. Kalaari Capital has funded more than 50 companies in India. Some of Vani’s notable successes are Snapdeal, Myntra, VIA, Apps Daily, Urban Ladder, Zivame, Power2SME and Bluestone.

Also Read: Funds Pour in for Women-Oriented Startups

But most importantly, Vani Kola and the venture capital fund have funded two most notable investments–PopXo and CashKaro– run by women.

READ: 30 Women Redefining The Digital Space In India

Read More Stories By Ria Das

Join Us on https://www.facebook.com/SheThePeoplePage

Follow Us on https://twitter.com/SheThePeopleTV