Rai joins as independent chairman of the board.
The appointment comes at a time when BharatPe’s cofounder Ashneer Grover has faced flak by many in the Indian startup ecosystem, after an
expletive-laced audio clip leaked two weeks ago. Grover used abusive language as well as gave death threats to a Kotak Mahindra Bank employee for missing out on financing for Nykaa’s initial public offering.
While speaking about Rai’s appointment, Unity Bank said his experience as a board member in several public sector undertakings and private banks will help in shaping the long term strategy for the lender.
Rai was previously chairman of the Banks Board Bureau, the body which advises the Indian government on top-level appointments at public sector banks and suggests ways to address bad loans. The former IAS officer has served in multiple capacities in the union ministries of finance, commerce and defence as well as in several central and state governments.
“Driven by its mission to have the highest standards of corporate governance, Unity Bank endeavours to have a strong board to guide its journey towards becoming a successful digital bank,” Unity Bank said in a statement on Thursday.
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Unity Bank recently onboarded several banking industry stalwarts, including RBI veteran Sandip Ghose, Syndicate Bank’s former chairman Basant Seth, and RBL Bank’s former chairman Subhash Kutte.
In June 2021, the RBI cleared the takeover of Punjab and Maharashtra Cooperative Bank by a joint partnership of Centrum Financial Services and fintech BharatPe, and granted them an in-principle approval to set up a small finance bank.
After receiving the approval, both parties had said that they will be jointly infusing $250-300 million (or up to Rs 2,224 crore) in PMC Bank, while making it operational and removing the curbs placed on the bank, including cash withdrawals for depositors.
On Wednesday, BharatPe cofounder Grover announced
he was taking a “voluntary leave” until the end of March. In a public statement, Grover said that he will be back “on or before April 1”.
“For now, the board has accepted Ashneer’s decision, which we agree is in the best interests of the company, our employees and investors, and the millions of merchants we support each day,” BharatPe said in a statement on Wednesday.
