33.32 lakh rupees of Compulsory Convertible Debentures (CCD) of Galactus Funware Technology Private Limited were allotted to Virat Kohli.
The company that Indian cricket captain Virat Kohli invested in in February 2019 is the official kit sponsor and merchandise partner of the MPL Sports Board of Control for India in India (BCCI). The question of conflict of interest may arise here. 33.32 lakhs Compulsory Convertible Debentures (CCD) of Galactus Funware Technology Private Limited were allotted to Virat Kohli. Bangalore-based Galactus owns the Mobile Premier League (MPL) and Virat Kohli, the brand ambassador of MPL. Galactor is a subsidiary of M-League Pte Ltd, a company registered in Singapore in April 2018.
On 17 November 2020, BCCI announced MPL Sports as the new kit sponsor and official merchandise partner of the Indian cricket team. This agreement is three years old. Under this agreement, apart from the Indian men’s and women’s cricket team, the under-19 team will wear the MPL jersey. At this time, the Indian cricket team, who went on an Australian tour, is playing cricket wearing the logo of MPL Sports, an affiliate of MPL. Apart from the licensed jersey, MPL Sports will also have the rights to sell other merchandise of Team India. Kohli was made the brand ambassador of MPL in January 2020. Even before that, he had advertised the gaming platform.
Kohli will get equity shares of the company after 10 years
According to Indian Express, 68 CCDs with the face value of Rs 10 have been issued to Virat Kohli at a premium price of Rs 48,990 whose total value is around Rs 33.32 lakh. These CCDs will be converted into equity shares at the end of 10 years and this conversion ratio will be 1: 1 i.e. for a debenture, Kohli will get 1 equity share. In this way, Kohli will have 0.051 percent stake in the company after ten years.
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This is the whole case
According to the news of the Indian Express, on 5 February 2019, when Kohli was issued the CCD, Galactus also issued 34 CCD Cornerstone Sports LLP worth Rs 16.66 lakh. Cornerstone CEO Amit Arun Sajdeh is an associate of Kohli in two Limited Liability Partnership firms – Magpie Venture Partners LLP and Virat Kohli Sports LLP. Apart from this, there is another link between Sajdeh and Kohli.
Sajdeh is the director of Cornerstone Sport and Entertainment Pvt Ltd and manages Kohli’s commercial rights. Apart from this, it also manages the commercial rights of KL Rahul, Rishabh Kant, Umesh Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav and Shubham Gill. Speaking to The Indian Express, Sajdeh said that Virat Kohli and Cornerstone are free to invest in any business and as long as Kohli does not invest in Cornerstone, there is no case of conflict of interest.
BCCI was not aware
According to a top BCCI official, the Indian board was not aware of Kohli and Cornerstone’s stake in MPL and the board should not be expected to track the investments of its players. Another BCCI member said that Kohli is an influential figure in Indian cricket and such interconnections cannot be called better for good governance.
