Gokaldas Exports strengthens board with 3 new Ind Directors; stock rallies ~7%

28 Oct 2022 , 12:24 PM

Gokaldas Exports announced key changes to its board composition on Thursday, including the appointment of managing director Siva Ganapathi as Executive Vice Chairman, as the company pursues ambitious growth plans led by professionals.

Since March 2017, when Clear Wealth Consultancy purchased a 39% stake in the Bengaluru-based listed company from the Blackstone Group for Rs58 crore or Rs42 per share, the company has experienced a significant turnaround.

The 10-year investment had resulted in significant losses for the US private equity firm.

Six months later, the board appointed Ganapathi, a former Idea Cellular Chief Operating Officer, to lead the company. Since then, the company’s revenue and workforce have more than doubled, and the share price has more than quadrupled. The once-debt-ridden firm now has a cash surplus of Rs369 crore and only does business with foreign clients.

As independent directors, the board also appointed market strategy expert Rama Bijapurkar, George Varughese, CEO of New York-based A&M Securities, and investor Shiv Dalvie. It also appointed Poorna Sreenivasan, president of the company, to the board.

Mathew Cyriac, a promoter, will take over as non-executive chairman after Richard B Saldanha retires in November. The other promoter, Gautham Madhavan, is stepping down from the board.

The company believes that restructuring is intended to assist it in being guided by board-driven management, as funds, portfolio, and retail investors collectively own nearly four-fifths of the company.

At around 12.28 PM, Gokaldas Exports was trading at Rs384.90 up by 6.56% from its previous closing of Rs361.20 on the BSE. The scrip touched intraday high and low of Rs395 and Rs374.75 respectively.

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