Why Flipkart's Mukesh Bansal decided to call it quits

With the decision of one Bansal, Mukesh Bansal, calling it quits and ending his two-year stint at the e-commerce platform Flipkart, grapevine is abuzz with the reason behind the sudden top-level exit.

Mukesh, currently in-charge of Flipkart's commerce and advertising business, had become a part of the e-tailer in 2014 when he sold off fashion portal Myntra, which he had founded, for $375 million.

Since then, climbing the ladder up pretty fast, he was made the head of fashion and electronic business within a year of joining Flipkart. He was also made in-charge of the marketing and was even being considered for the post of CEO at the e-commerce company.

While some say that the recent elevation of co-founder Binny Bansal as the CEO might have influenced Mukesh's decision, the latter on the other hand says that his resignation was being considered for quite some time and is part of the top-level restructuring process.

Some analysts also say that Mukesh leaving Flipkart was imminent since the Myntra merger happened as no-one wants to lose his company to a competitor. Mukesh is said to have been spending an obligatory period at Flipkart till now, before moving on to be in-charge of his own destiny one more time.

Along with Mukesh, Flipkart's Chief Business Officer Ankit Nagori who joined the company in 2010, will also be exiting the company, though both will be headed their different ways after their journey at Flipkart ends.

Mukesh will take a 3-6 months break after he leaves the company in March, after which he is said to be beginning his new venture. Nagori, who will complete three more months at the e-tailer will launch his start-up in discovering new sports talent with the backing of Flipkart co-founders Sachin and Binny Bansal.

The good part is, the exits seem to happen on a healthy note with Binny heaping praises on Mukesh and stating that the latter will continue to be an advisor to Flipkart. Mukesh's exit will leave Binny firmly in control of the country's largest e-commerce company.

"My two years with Flipkart has been nothing short of fairy tale. Sachin and Binny have built a very unique company that has practically created the e-commerce industry in India and consistently led in innovation like COD, eKart, 30-day return and m-commerce. We are well on our way to build India's first real tech company, drive genuine innovation and transform commerce in India through technology. I am looking forward to a long break after my transition and catching up on my reading, travel and fitness. I will be spending bunch of time with my kids and catch up on all the fun I have missed with them all these years," Mukesh Bansal wrote in a letter to Flipkart employees.