Bengaluru: IT major Infosys Ltd on Friday said it has decided to sell its subsidiary Panaya, the Israeli firm whose acquisition became a contentious issue between the founders and the erstwhile management led by Vishal Sikka, and is also looking at offloading its other subsidiaries Kallidus and Skava.
“In the quarter ended March 31, 2018, on conclusion of a strategic review of its portfolio of businesses, the company initiated identification and evaluation of potential buyers for its subsidiaries, Kallidus and Skava (together referred to as ‘Skava’) and Panaya (collectively referred to as ‘disposal group’),” Infosys said in a regulatory filing.
Infosys expects the sale to be completed by March 2019.
“Accordingly, assets amounting to Rs2,060 crore ($316 million) and liabilities amounting to Rs324 crore ($50 million) in respect of the disposal group have been reclassified and presented as ‘held for sale’,” Infosys said.
Infosys said upon reclassification, an impairment loss of Rs118 crore ($18 million) in respect of Panaya has been recognized in the consolidated profit and loss for the quarter and year ended 31 March 2018. The corresponding write-down in the investment value of Panaya in the standalone financial statements of Infosys is Rs589 crore ($90 million), it added.
A whistleblower report last year alleged wrongdoings by Infosys and some officials in the $200 million Panaya acquisition. An internal audit committee set up by Infosys found no evidence supporting the whistleblower’s allegations. However, Infosys founder N.R. Narayana Murthy had demanded that the full report by Gibson, Dunn and Crutcher on these whistleblower allegations be made public.
Later in October, the Infosys board—under its new chairman Nandan Nilekani—gave a clean chit to the controversial Panaya acquisition, saying there was no merit in the allegations of wrongdoing. It had also said that after a “careful re-consideration” it has concluded that putting out more details of the probe would “inhibit the company’s ability to conduct effective investigations into any matter in the future”.\
On Friday, Infosys shares rose 0.58%, or Rs6.75, to Rs1,169.00 on the BSE while the benchmark Sensex gained 0.27%, or 91.52 points, to end the day at 34,192.65.