Troubled e-commerce marketplace firm Groupon brings in new CFO as part of transformation push

Groupon, an e-commerce marketplace connecting subscribers with local merchants by offering activities, travel, goods and services, has announced the appointment of Jiri Ponrt as Chief Financial Officer.

He joins from Pale Fire Capital, a private equity investment group which holds a 22% stake in the Chicago company, prior to which he served as CFO at Alza.cz, an e-commerce player in Central and Eastern Europe.

Before that he spent 15 years at Danone/Nutricia, where he gained experience both in a variety of financial and commercial roles.

The move follows Dusan Senkypl, Chairman and CEO at Pale Fire, stepping in as interim CEO following the resignation of Kedar Deshpande.

Pale Fire is helping Groupon rebuild its technology team, which includes the appointment of a new CTO from one of its other portfolio companies.

Meanwhile, in its 2022 annual report filed last month with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Groupon said it had identified a material weakness in its internal control over financial reporting, linked to an immaterial accounting error related to accrued merchant payables.

It flagged a reasonable possibility its existing controls wouldn’t have detected the error in a timely manner if it this had been material.

“Jiri is a highly regarded CFO with an impressive track record of partnering with business leaders to successfully utilise financial data to inform operational decision making and strategy,” says Šenkypl.

“A key part of his role will be to significantly improve internal processes, controls and financial reporting. Beyond his financial credentials, Jiri has the necessary leadership and communication skills to translate detailed information into clear, concise and accessible messaging, a vital skill as we look to unlock Groupon’s full potential and super-charge our transformation.”

“I am excited to welcome Jiri to the management team. I also want to take this opportunity to thank Damien for over 10 years of service and wish him all the best in his future endeavours.”

“I am delighted to be joining Dušan and the team as they continue on their journey to make Groupon the leading destination for local services and experiences,” says Ponrt.

“Following our January restructuring announcement and significant reduction of our fixed cost structure, it is time to accelerate our transformation from this solid base.”

“Our focus will continue to be on operational excellence, embedding financial rigour throughout the business, streamlining and simplifying internal processes and providing decision support to key functions.”

“It’s a fantastic opportunity and I look forward to working with the wider team to successfully execute our growth strategy and deliver the company’s transformation programme.”