BharatPe’s estranged cofounder Ashneer Grover has accused his fellow cofounder and current CEO of OTPLess Bhavik Koladiya of data theft in an email to the National Payments Council of India and BharatPe’s independent director Kaushik Dutta.
Giving him (Koladiya) an opportunity at redemption at BharatPe, which he abused to do the largest data theft in India to date, was a catastrophic mistake. Bhavik was previously sentenced to 18 months of home arrest and deportation to India after being found guilty of credit card theft in the US. In India, a FIR was also filed against him at the Delhi airport for attempting to use a fake ticket to travel to Gujarat. I’ve attached records of his conviction and a copy of the FIR,” Grover emailed on February 6.
“I vehemently refute Ashneer Grover’s unfounded and untrue accusations. In response to Moneycontrol’s inquiry, Koladiya stated that the accusations were nothing more than an act of rage and retribution on his side following his termination from BharatPe and my current legal case against him in the Delhi High Court.
I take these charges seriously because I care about our users’ security and privacy. However, in this specific instance, there is no need for alarm because Mr. Grover’s assertions are wholly unfounded, Koladiya continued. In response to questions from Moneycontrol, BharatPe stated that it adheres to strong security standards and protects the data of its clients.
“This accusation is nasty and utterly without merit. Customers’ data is fiercely protected by BharatPe, which also adheres to strict security guidelines. Less than 10% of our merchant base uses OTPless, our service provider, and we are totally in compliance with all of our data privacy commitments to our customers and partners, according to BharatPe’s official spokeswoman. Tanmay Sagar, Satyam Nathani, and Koladiya, who were also founding members of BharatPe, departed the company in August 2021 to create OTPLess. Koladiya served as its inaugural CEO. Sagar Satija, Manas Poddar, and Chirag Bhadiyadra are three further former senior BharatPe officials who have joined OTPless.
Grover Vs Koladia
In January 2023, as part of a lawsuit Koladiya brought to recoup shares transferred to Grover, the Delhi High Court summoned Grover and BharatPe. Koladiya left his employment at BharatPe in August of last year while still employed by the company as a consultant. Koladiya had stated at the time that BharatPe was one of his major investments and that he planned to keep a stake in the business for the foreseeable future. Previous press reports claimed that Grover held certain BharatPe shares on Koladiya’s behalf.
In 2017, Koladiya and Shashvat Nakrani co-founded the fintech business. When the company needed a new CEO in 2018, the pair turned to Grover, who they later partnered with.
