Azim Premji sells shares worth Rs 9,000 crore in buyback – Times of India

BENGALURU: Wipro founder chairman Azim Premji and the promoter group tendered 22.8 crore shares worth Rs 9,156 crore in the company’s share buyback, paring their stake from 74% to 73%.
Premji’s two philanthropic trusts — Azim Premji Trust and Azim Premji Philanthropic Initiatives — will earn Rs 7,807 crore (over $1 billion) from this, making them among the largest charitable trusts in India. The trusts are putting money into areas like education, nutrition and are addressing issues concerning vulnerable groups including street children, people with disabilities and survivors of domestic violence.
In September last year, the IIFL Wealth Hurun India Rich List placed Premji in the fifth spot with a fortune of Rs 1,14,400 crore. Premji has already committed $21 billion to his philanthropic activities, making his endowment the biggest in Asia and one of the largest in the world. Of the 73% of shares that Premji & family control in Wipro, the economic value of 67% has been earmarked for the trusts. The voting rights remain with the family.
Recently, Wipro chairman Rishad Premji tweeted a monochrome photograph of his grandmother and his parents at Amalner, saying, “My grandmother Dr Gulbanoo Premji with my parents at Amalner… She was also the most generous person I knew. Her values shaped Wipro’s philanthropy ideals.”