Zoho founder Sridhar Vembu's wife accuses him of selling stakes without asking her amidst divorce battle

High-profile divorces often make headlines for hefty settlements, with Amazon founder Jeff Bezos paying $38 billion to finalise his split with MacKenzie Scott. When Zoho founder Sridhar Vembu moved to an Indian village after running the business from California for 25 years, he wanted to set an example for cross fertilisation of ideas in a rural setting. But his wife claims that leaving the US and shifting Zoho's intellectual property there, was Vembu's way to abandon her and their son with special needs.

Allegations blemish celebrated entrepreneur

In a court filing, the Padmashri awardee's wife Pramila Srinivasan alleged that Vembu transferred their most valuable community asset without even talking to her. She added that he sold stakes in the firm to his sister and broher-in-law, without a cash payment or any such consideration. Vembu who has won accolades for his efforts to inspire employees to live the village life, denies claims about transferring shares to bring down his wife's financial interest in Zoho.

Her lawyer has claimed that Vembu violated the community property law in California, which pevents the disposal of assets without informing the spouse. Pramila claims that Vembu left for India in 2020, and instead of returning, asked for divorce via WhatsApp before filing papers in 2021. He allegedly gave away a major part of his stake in Zoho to his sister and her husband, to avoid paying a significant sum to his wife as settlement.

Shady division of stakes

The founder of one of the most successful Indian software firms, Vembu had arrived in the US for a PhD in 1989 and married Srinivasan in 1993 before joining Qualcomm. Although he started running Zoho after moving to San Francisco Bay area, the company site shows that it was founded in Chennai, while a timeline cites origins in New Jersey. A breakdown of holdings filed by Srinivasan's lawyer shows that Vembu's sister Radha owns 49 per cent of Zoho, while her husband has 34 per cent, with Vembu himself keeping just 5 per cent.

Tries to downplay net worth

Although Vembu claimed in court that media reports about his family's $4 billion net worth are exaggerated, Forbes has based its evaluation on financials disclosed to India's Ministry of Corporate Affairs. Pramila, who herself has been running a firm MedicalMine since 2010, also looks after their 23-year-old autistic son, who she claims Vembu abandoned with her. But he argues that despite his efforts, Pramila didn't move to India with their son, and the possibility of a reconciliation ended with the pandemic.

According to the entrepreneur's paternal uncle Ram Srinivasan, Radha was asked to hold the money for her brother, who will get the entire amount once his divorce is finalised.