Coforge appoints Akhil Gupta as chairman amid board reset

appointed Akhil Kumar Gupta as its chairperson and non-executive independent director for a five-year term, subject to shareholder approval. The appointment follows weeks of boardroom turmoil after former chairman O.P. Bhatt resigned in September. Gupta, former vice-chairman of Bharti Enterprises, brings more than 40 years of professional experience and currently chairs the boards of 360 ONE WAM and Bharti Life Insurance. His appointment follows a global search led by Egon Zehnder, with the company stating that he emerged as the unanimous choice of the NRC and Board. The leadership change comes after an internal audit raised concerns over the handling of the board evaluation process. Bhatt and former NRC chairman D.K. Singh subsequently exited the board, with Singh citing differences and tension between independent and executive directors. Coforge rejected those allegations and said its board had continued to work with close cooperation. For investors, the new chairman could help bring greater stability to the board and shift attention back to Coforge's operating priorities. The company has maintained that the governance issue is separate from its financial reporting and that its four-year revenue guidance of close to $5 billion remains intact. The key monitorables are shareholder approval, appointment of additional independent directors, governance stability and execution of the company's AI strategy and Encora integration. JPMorgan also noted that focus could now shift back to core performance, AI traction, Encora integration and Coforge's longer-term goals. Overall, the appointment provides a new leadership structure following the recent board changes. The key trigger ahead is whether the refreshed board can restore governance stability while keeping management focused on business execution and its long-term growth targets.