No relief for BharatPe co-founder Ashneer Grover in arbitration

BharatPe co-founder and managing director Ashneer Grover failed to secure emergency relief from the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC), allowing a probe on alleged financial irregularities and governance lapses at the fintech unicorn to continue, a person with direct knowledge of the matter said.

Excerpts of the order passed on 25 February said that Grover had not established any valid right under the shareholder agreement (SHA) or general law for such relief.

Queries sent to Grover and a spokesperson for BharatPe were not answered immediately.

BharatPe constituted a review committee in January to look into some alleged financial irregularities and governance lapses in the three-year-old fintech firm. The committee will rely on the findings of third-party investigators Alvarez & Marsal and PwC.

Grover, on 8 February, filed an application for emergency relief with SIAC seeking emergency relief before the constitution of the tribunal. Grover feared that the review committee was not conducting a genuine governance review, was acting in haste and constituted with the sole motive of depriving him of his shareholding.

SIAC, in the order, said the review committee was formed a month back and has still not reached a conclusion on whether Grover is guilty of misconduct and gross negligence, and no action has been taken against him.

This would, to a large extent, belie the claimant's apprehension of the review committee acting in haste, SIAC held.

The SIAC said whether the preliminary investigation's conclusion is justifiable or not will be considered by the Arbitral Tribunal in due course.