BharatPe is remaking itself

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Editor's note: BharatPe is not the fintech it was a year ago.  Earlier this year, co-founder Ashneer Grover’s unceremonious departure from the four-year-old firm created much noise in the Indian startup world. As the year progressed, it seemed both parties had put the issue to bed. But this month, Grover published an autobiography detailing his entrepreneurial journey and the “Machiavellian plot” to get rid of him from BharatPe. Earlier this month, BharatPe sued Grover, his wife, Madhuri Jain Grover, and others over alleged misappropriation of funds through company accounts. The suit, filed before the Delhi High Court, seeks to recover Rs 88 crore in damages, saying the Grovers allegedly exercised total control of the company’s affairs by hiring relatives in key positions and routing payments to fake vendors, recruitment agencies, related companies and for personal expenses.  The company has also initiated arbitration proceedings in Singapore to claw back Grover’s unvested shares. Grover holds a 8.4% stake in the firm, of which 1.4% had not vested before his departure; investor agreements usually mandate that founders’ equity can be clawed back when they exit …