Apr 29 2024, 09:09
This blockchain firm headed by ex-Paytm CFO is facing employee backlash:
Himanshu Maradiya, founder and chairman, CIFDAQ India, and Sanjay Saxena, co-founder and CEO, CIFDAQ India and South East Asia; image credit: company.
Some employees allege forced resignations, threats, and non-payment of salaries, and have sent legal notices to the employer. While the company admits that there have been some delays in salary payments due to challenges of being a startup, it denies other charges as unfounded.
On January 30, Rahul Singh, a software engineer, sent a legal notice to Sigmond Morgan IT Solutions Pvt Ltd naming founder Himanshu Maradiya, and five others, including two co- founders and senior executives for non-payment of salaries for two and a half months since November 2023.
Singh was employed by Sigmond Morgan, founded by Himanshu Maradiya, his wife Sheetal, and son Rahul. Sigmond Morgan and CIFDAQ have the same founders, and the company said that the latter employed Sigmond Morgan for technology development on need basis. Singh was one such employee working on blockchain development.
Singh alleged that apart from non-payment of salaries, the company threatened him with a false theft suit in the event he did not resign. He left the company on January 22, 2024.
Singh is seeking compensation of about INR22 lakh, which includes a pending salary of INR2 lakh and the rest for the mental distress he underwent in the company. ET Prime has reviewed the copy of the notice.
This was just the first of three notices the company and its personnel received since Janu The other two notices sent in February and April, were from the labour commissioner in Mumbai and arbitration notice, respectively, to settle the dues.
CIFDAQ's parent company was initially registered in Marshall Islands but was discontinued in 2022. "Our strategy evolved, leading to the formation of CIFDAQ Blockchain Ecosystem Ind Ltd, registered in Maharashtra (Mumbai). CIFDAQ India operates as an independent entity, not as a subsidiary of CIFDAQ Marshall," the company said in a statement.
Apart from these entities, Shrisaya Wallet LLC, registered in Delaware, US, is an affiliate of CIFDAQ and operates CIFDAQ Wallet, as mentioned in the CIFDAQ's Wallet privacy policy. While the company said that the wallet is a part of CIFDAQ India's product offerings, its privacy policy states that the operations are controlled by the Shrisaya Wallet, the affiliate entity.
source:et
Apr 29 2024, 09:30