B2B South Asian Platform Zilingo COO Aadi Vaidya Resigns

Zilingo, a Singapore-based B2B ecommerce start-up, is still losing senior executives months after Ankiti Bose, the co-founder and former CEO, was under investigation for alleged financial irregularities. Aadi Vaidya, COO of Zilingo, announced on Twitter that he would be leaving the company after seven years. His resignation is the latest setback for the business, whose fortunes have fallen off a cliff this year despite possibly being on the verge of raising a unicorn round.

"I've chosen to leave Zilingo and move forward. It was a place where I developed professionally and personally and made wonderful friends and co-workers. Although Zilingo will always hold a special place in my heart, I believe it is time to move on and revaluate priorities " Vaidya, who owns around 2% of Zilingo, stated. In 2015, Vaidya began working with Zilingo as vice president and head of expansion. In 2017, he received a promotion to the chief operating officer. Before Zilingo, he was employed by Citibank India.

Only a few weeks before Vaidya's departure, Zilingo co-founder Ankiti Bose announced her resignation from the company's board of directors in response to the "opacity of information" those other shareholders had given her. Prior to this, Bose was let go by the Zilingo board on May 20 as a result of a Kroll probe into potential financial irregularities. In various media stories, Bose has refuted the accusations.

Prior to this, Bose was let go by the Zilingo board on May 20 as a result of a Kroll probe into potential financial irregularities. In various media stories, Bose has refuted the accusations. Dhruv Kapoor, the company's other co-founder, put out a plan to inject extra capital into the business and restructure debt on June 19 in an effort to stave off liquidation.

With the help of an investor group supporting this deal, Kapoor's proposal was a "preliminary and non-binding offer" to pay off the $48 million in outstanding debt owing to Varde Partners and Indies Capital in a deferred manner and inject $8 million in new equity into the company. Co-founder Bose accepted the offer. Zilingo's liquidation was not put to a vote last month because the firm was also considering alternative proposals.

Bose was initially suspended and then asked to resign by the board of directors after a whistleblower informed the company's investors about irregularities earlier this year. Prior to that, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. was helping Zilingo raise $150-200 million at a unicorn valuation. A start-up valued at least $1 billion that is privately held is considered a unicorn. Zilingo raised $226 million in 2019, with Sequoia Capital serving as the primary investor. Temasek Holdings of Singapore participated in the round as a new investor.