Siddharth Mehta, the Managing Director and CEO of Axis Bank-owned payments wallet company Freecharge, has resigned the company to start his own venture. Freecharge appointed Mehta as the MD for a four-year tenure from August 20, 2019, to August 19, 2023, according to the a media report.
He had taken over for Sangram Singh. Mehta quit the payment wallet firm in February 2023, according to his LinkedIn profile. His replacement is yet unknown. An Axis Bank spokeswoman confirmed Mehta’s resignation, according to reports.
According to the Registrar of Companies (ROC), Mehta founded Gokiwi Tech with Mohit Bedi, a former Axis Bank executive, in November 2022.
In October 2017, Axis Bank paid Rs 373 crore in all-cash for the payments wallet startup. It had stated that the acquisition of Freecharge will increase the bank’s customer base and kickstart its digital journey.
According to the company’s financials, the startup reported Rs 287 crore in operating revenue in FY22, although profits fell to Rs 23 crore from Rs 37 crore in FY21. Freecharge had also filed to the Reserve Bank of India for a payment aggregator licence (RBI). The RBI, however, rejected the application last month and requested that the business reapply within 120 days.
