Zilingo board may replace suspended CEO as probe continues

After suspending Ms Ankiti Bose from her post as chief executive officer, the board of Zilingo is discussing replacing her for good amid an investigation into the Singapore start-up's accounting practices, according to people familiar with the matter.

Directors have been talking regularly in recent days to consider the future of Ms Bose and Zilingo itself, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the discussions are private. Ms Bose, whose suspension runs until May 5, has pressed the board to clarify her status in part because she is concerned the company is growing directionless, the people said.

The board has not yet decided who will replace Ms Bose, though one option discussed is to appoint interim leadership, possibly including senior executives and investors, the people said. Private investigative firm Kroll is conducting a probe of Zilingo's bookkeeping and is aiming to finish soon.

Ms Bose has denied any wrongdoing and has hired an attorney to fight back against what they have described as a "witch hunt". She has grown frustrated with the conflicts and has begun to realise she is unlikely to return as CEO, according to one of the people.

In a statement to Bloomberg, Ms Bose said she is "fully committed to cooperating with the board in the investigations" and that "one thing we all agree on is that whenever there are credible complaints, as board members, we are obligated to look into them and do what is best for the company".

Zilingo did not respond to requests for comment.

Zilingo, which supplies technology to apparel merchants and factories and is backed by Sequoia Capital India and Temasek, had been one of the highest-profile start-ups to emerge from Singapore until revelations about its accounting probe and the CEO's suspension emerged this month.

Sequoia said on behalf of the board that any question of change in management is "speculative and premature at this stage".

Temasek said in its own statement: "We expect our portfolio companies to abide by sound corporate governance and codes of conduct and ethics. We are therefore supportive of the board's investigation into the complaint as part of good governance, to safeguard the interests of the company."

Mr Shailendra Singh from Sequoia Capital India and two other directors have resigned from Zilingo's board in recent weeks. Sequoia's Mr Sandeep Kher has taken over his director post at Zilingo. Sequoia India made a post on its website on Sunday, following troubles at several of its start-ups including Zilingo.

"Recently some portfolio founders have been under investigation for potential fraudulent practices or poor governance. These allegations are deeply disturbing," it read. "We need some guardrails that we, as an ecosystem, sign up to, so that a few errant founders don't create big setbacks for the wider ecosystem at large."

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