Wipro Chairman Azim Premji has pledged an additional 34 percent of the company’s shares controlled by him toward philanthropy.
The Azim Premji Foundation said on Wednesday that the commitment, worth Rs 527.5 billion or $7.5 billion would take the total value of the endowment corpus contributed by Premji to Rs 1.45 trillion or $21 billion. 34 percent of the shares in Wipro currently valued at Rs 52,750 crore or $7.5 billion.
Premji and entities controlled by him hold about 74 percent stake in Wipro, according to exchange data. All the dividends, bonus and other benefits that accrue to the 67 percent stake will go towards the endowment that supports Premji Foundation’s philanthropic activities.
Premji, India’s second richest man, was instrumental in turning Wipro from a vegetable oil manufacturer to a software services company nearly four decades ago.
Azim Premji Foundation is a not-for profit organization that works in the field of education and runs a university in Bengaluru.
Azim Premji’s earlier donations to philanthropy included Wipro’s shares as well as other assets owned by him.
Azim Premji, through his entities, earned Rs 10,115 crore through dividends and share-buybacks from his entire stake in Wipro over the past three years.
