SNEAK PEEK
- Rario’s founders, CEO Ankit Wadhwa and CTO Sunny Bhanot, have reportedly stepped down.
- Dream11, a major Indian fantasy sports platform, and Rario’s largest backer, is reportedly sidelined.
- Rario’s investor base includes Dream11, global investment firm Alpha Wave Global, and cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar.
In a significant development, the founders of Rario, a platform specializing in cricket-related non fungible tokens (NFTs) on the Polygon network, have reportedly stepped down from their roles. Ankit Wadhwa, the CEO, and Sunny Bhanot, the CTO, are exiting the company as investors gain more influence, according to a TechCrunch report dated September 8.
Dream11, a leading Indian fantasy sports platform, and Rario’s largest financial backer, is reportedly sidelined. This move is part of a broader restructuring effort that includes eliminating several roles within the company. Rario’s investor portfolio is not limited to Dream11; it includes global investment firm Alpha Wave Global and cricket icon Sachin Tendulkar. In a Series A funding round in April 2022, Rario secured $120 million, asserting its dominant position in cricket NFT rights with a roster of 900 cricketers.
The recent organizational changes are said to be influenced by Dream11’s parent company, Dream Sports, reportedly working on cost-cutting measures. TechCrunch states that Dream Sports is renegotiating many licensing agreements Rario had previously secured to reduce operational costs.
As of the reporting time, these changes still need to be updated on the LinkedIn profiles of the departing executives. Both Rario and Dream11 have yet to comment on the matter publicly.
Founded in 2021, Rario had set out to create digital cricket collectibles and foster an online community for fans. By April 2021, the company reported the sale of 50,000 NFTs to sports enthusiasts in 20 different countries.
Rario had also entered into agreements with several cricket leagues, including Cricket Australia, the Australian Cricketers’ Association, the Caribbean Premier League, the Lanka Premier League, and the Abu Dhabi T10 League Legends League Cricket.
This shakeup at Rario comes at a time when the NFT market is experiencing rapid changes, and it remains to be seen how these executive departures and restructuring efforts will impact the platform’s future.
