Medikabazaar's board ousted co-founder Vivek Tiwari over fraud and misreporting claims

Medikabazaar, a B2B medical supply chain platform, had raised over $190 million, including a $65 million Series D round in 2022 led by Lighthouse India that valued the company at $700 million. In April 2025 its shareholders passed a resolution removing co-founder Vivek Tiwari from the board for 'fraudulent actions', according to a regulatory filing accessed from the Registrar of Companies: 'Mr. Vivek Tiwari is involved in malicious and fraudulent activities, including those of financial mismanagement and financial fraud, which have caused irreparable harm and damage.'

An investigation by Uniqus India, Alvarez & Marsal and M/s Rashmikant & Partners concluded Tiwari had breached fiduciary duty and was guilty of gross negligence, misappropriation and misstatements, per the Registrar of Companies filing. PwC auditors found inconsistencies in revenue recognition and governance issues, which led to Tiwari's removal as CEO the year before. Series C investors filed an indemnity claim of ₹278.7 crore alleging misreporting in prior financial periods. FY23 revenue of ₹908 crore came with a net loss of ₹304 crore, and the FY2024 annual report still had not been filed.

Tiwari rejects all of it. 'I categorically deny all allegations of fraudulent conduct or intentional misrepresentation during my tenure as CEO. The claims suggesting my involvement in any alleged inflation of revenue figures are misleading, and do not reflect the reality of the situation,' he wrote to Entrackr, saying 'true facts will emerge.' He and co-founder Ketan Malkan hold 12.36% and 12.35% of the company; its largest external stakeholders are Craegis, Rebright Partners and HealthQuad.

Growth-stage governance held: an independent three-firm investigation concluded fiduciary breach, gross negligence, misappropriation and misstatements.

PwC's audit tied the alleged inflation to revenue recognition — the metric that carried the company's $700 million Series D valuation.

Series C investors moved to protect their earlier entry with a ₹278.7 crore indemnity claim, alleging misreporting in prior financial periods.

The company's own disclosure record added pressure: no annual report filed for FY2024, after a FY23 net loss of ₹304 crore on ₹908 crore revenue.

A startup's reported growth is only as real as its revenue-recognition policy; when auditors and investors re-add the numbers, the valuation is the first thing to go.

Tiwari left the board by shareholder resolution and denied every allegation in writing, pledging that emerging facts would reaffirm his reputation and integrity. Medikabazaar's FY2024 annual report remains unfiled. Entrackr framed the case alongside listed Gensol Engineering's promoter troubles as part of a pattern pushing startup investors toward stricter checks and balances — a 'poisoning of the well' that makes honest founders' fundraising harder.