te Will Nikesh Arora's exit shift Softbank's focus from India? | Zee Business

Will Nikesh Arora's exit shift Softbank's focus from India?

In June last year, SoftBank along with contract manufacturing giant Foxconn, had partnered with Bharti Enterprises.

Will Nikesh Arora's exit shift Softbank's focus from India?
SoftBank's investment in India has crossed the $1 billion mark. Photo: Reuters

India-born Softbank President and COO Nikesh Arora has resigned from the company with effect from June 22 but will stay in advisory role for a year.

Arora, who is responsible for global operations, has led SoftBank's investments in India's e-commerce provider Snapdeal.com, ride-hailing service Ola Cabs, real-estate website Housing.com, hotel-booking app Oyo Rooms and Grofers.

SoftBank's investment in India has crossed the $1 billion mark and has recently stated that its investment in the country will cross USD 10 billion in coming years.

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In June last year, SoftBank along with contract manufacturing giant Foxconn, had partnered with Bharti Enterprises with plans to invest USD 20 billion in solar power projects in India. 

But, with his exit, will India be in focus for SoftBank?

While replying to queries on Twitter, Arora tweeted that he will continue to support the Indian start-up ecosystem.

Moreover, when asked about what is the future of SoftBank's Indian portfolio companies, Arora said, "Like every individual has a different future, so does every company".

Kunal Behl, Co-founder and CEO of Snapdeal, e-commerce major where SoftBank has invested in, said, "Nikesh has been a great supporter and mentor to our business and we look forward to the same continuing going forward as well. Softbank will continue to provide financial and strategic support to our company and the transition at Softbank will have no impact on our business".

Further, according to CNBC TV18, Rahul Yadav, former CEO of Housing.com, said, SoftBank's investments are currently not doing well and thus the bank should have given more time to Arora.

Bhavish Aggarwal Co-Founder & CEO of taxi-hailing service Ola Cabs, another start-up where SoftBank had invested, told to ZeeBusiness, "Nikesh is such a great friend, guide and mentor to me personally. I am sure he will continue to be a source of support and inspiration to the Indian startup ecosystem. I look forward to engaging with him in his role as an advisor to SoftBank in the time ahead. SoftBank as an investor has played a key role in Ola's growth story and we will continue to leverage the vast network and expertise that they bring to us as partners, in our mission of building mobility for a billion Indians.".

Lastly, when asked Arora whether he regret any investments made, he said, "The nature of investing is wins and losses, as long as wins overweight losses you win. Can't regret the loss.."

Updated: Tue, Jun 21, 2016
07:06 pm
Mumbai, ZeeBiz WebDesk
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