Over the last couple of years, SoftBank Group was responsible for investments in several burgeoning startups of the country. The deals have provided them with a board seat at most of these companies, which was filled by their chief operating officer Jonathan Bullock till date. The said individual has now resigned from his position at prominent portfolio companies, Ola and Snapdeal.
This development has come to light through a regulatory filing issued on Friday. Bullock has cited “personal reasons and other obligations” for his departure from the board of these SoftBank-backed companies. Bullock had on-boarded the company’s board after former chairman Nikesh Arora had stepped down from his position at the Japanese conglomerate.
Talking about his departure in the filing, Bullock says,
Please be informed that due to other obligations, I will no longer continue as a director of ANI Technologies Pvt Ltd and wish to be relieved of my duties and responsibilities with effect from January 16, 2017. Accordingly I hereby tender my resignation which may be accepted at the earliest.
These are the exact words to the email which has been forwarded to the boards of Ola parent ANI Technologies and Snapdeal parent Jasper Infotech. SoftBank has released a statement to clarify that the board exits are unrelated to any current operations at Snapdeal, Ola or other boards. Talking about Bullock’s departure, it says,
SoftBank Group International (SBGI) managing director Jonathan Bullock would be stepping down from a number of positions due to his operational commitments, including…Snapdeal and Ola boards in India. This is standard procedure and unrelated to any current operations at Snapdeal, Ola or other boards.
Further, the internet giant has also added that Bullock’s responsibilities will now be transferred to other SBGI Managing Directors, namely Kabir Misra and David Thevenon. They will join boards of Snapdeal and Ola respectively. Bullock will currently work with both the MD’s to avoid continuity challenges.
Further, the filing also mentioned that Bullock is resigning from the board of Housing.com, who counts SoftBank as their largest investor. But, the Japanese internet giant has released a statement to clear the air around this sighting in the regulatory filing. SoftBank stated that it was necessary for Bullock to first step down from his board position at Housing.com to attain a board seat at the newly formed entity after Proptiger-Housing merger. This was also required since the controlling entities were changed. Speaking on the same, SoftBank adds,
Because of the merger, the controlling entities were changed, which meant stepping down from that board and joining the fresh one—Proptiger-Housing—which has a different name.
