The rift among the promoters and top leadership of Infosys does not seem to be getting over anytime soon. The latest reports in various media sources claim that the co-founders of the company are seeking options to sell their entire stake in the company. Infosys is one of the biggest names in Indian IT industry and is responsible for establishing India on the forefront of global IT map.
Infosys co-founders, Narayana Murthy, Kris Gopalakrishnan, Nandan Nilekani, K Dinesh and SD Shibulal own 12.75% of the stake worth ₹28,000 crores.
One of the major reasons behind this move is the ongoing rift between the pool of founders and the current leadership of the company. According to a few sources, the founders are finally exploring options to leave the company. Infosys was started in 1981 and it went public in 1993. All the founders had exited their active roles in the company 3 years ago.
According to the ongoing analysis, the stock sale might take place in tranches. Technically, no investor will be interested in writing a multi-billion dollar check single-handedly just to own a minority stake in the company without any rights. If these reports are to be believed, then we might get to see a few new faces on the board of Infosys in the coming months (years).
In February this year, the spat between Vishal Sikka, current Infosys CEO and Narayana Murthy was much talked about. Narayana Murthy had raised some serious concerns over the present leadership and had spoken in open about the need to implement a changed strategy immediately. He had also raised questions over the high salary packages drawn by Sikka and other members in the top leadership.
While being asked about the things which triggered Murthy to consider such an option, he added that all he had to say about Infosys and Sikka has been said a few months back. He did not comment on the question of selling his stakes.