Snapdeal CFO resigns two months after company called off Flipkart merger 

Moneycontrol News 

Snapdeal's Chief Financial Officer Anup Vikal has put in his papers more than two months after the company called off its merger talks with rival Flipkart.

Vikal's departure marks one of the most important exits in the e-commerce company's recent past since Snapdeal announced its decision set up a '2.0' version of itself, a plan to transform into a much leaner organisation.

"It has been a privilege to lead the finance and legal teams, at Snapdeal, through a series of intense and crucial activities around divestments, profitability and investor relations. I am grateful for the trust reposed in me by the founders, the board of directors, the investors and for the unstinting support of my team members & leaders across the company. I am confident that Snapdeal will continue to lead in its journey of efficient & profitable growth. I will always cherish my association with Snapdeal," Vikal said in a statement.

Vikal had played a key role during the company's talks with Flipkart for an acquisition. He was appointed by Snapdeal in 2015. Before joining Snapdeal, Vikal was the CFO at telecom firm Aircel Ltd. He was brought in after the previous full time CFO of the company, Aakash Moondhra, left earlier that year.

"Anup has done sterling work at Snapdeal, building high levels of governance and helping structure various transactions of importance for the company," Kunal Bahl, chief executive of Snapdeal, said in a statement. "He has led the finance function with distinction, contributing immensely in furthering the profitability initiatives of Snapdeal, which the deep bench of Snapdeal' finance team will continue. I wish him the very best for his professional pursuits."

Vikal's exit comes soon after private lender Axis Bank completed the acquisition of Snapdeal's payments arm Freecharge, while holding back an amount of around Rs 80 crore, due to pending regulatory approvals.

Snapdeal had called off the deal talks with Flipkart in August, after Axis Bank agreed to acquire its payments arm Freecharge in a Rs 385 crore deal.

Not everyone at the company was happy with Snapdeal's decision to not align with Flipkart. Moneycontrol reported that a few employees had also alleged that the Plan B or Snapdeal 2.0 plan was not viable and that it would result in a large number of people losing their jobs.