"As I have always said, the founders have left an indelible legacy and culture in this iconic company and I respect and trust their decision of contributing towards philanthropic activities and entrepreneurship and other initiatives...So, in that sense again this action by them is aligned with the company's values," Sikka said in a statement.
"In fact, contributing to the greater good is something close to the company's heart, I am looking forward to further strengthening and reinforcing this area," he added.
Today, families of four Infosys co-founders, including Narayana Murthy and Nandan Nilekani, sold over USD 1 billion (Rs 6,484 crore) worth shares -- within months of all original promoters exiting the management and Sikka becoming the first outsider CEO.
While these four co-founders, which also include former CEO S D Shibulal and K Dinesh, have monetised only part of their holdings -- for entrepreneurship and philanthropic activities -- their action led to a sharp plunge of about 5 per cent in the IT heavyweight's share price eroding almost USD two billion from the company's market capitalisation.
Infosys, which currently commands a market value of about Rs 2.25 lakh crore, was founded by seven engineers, including these four, by pooling together just USD 250 in 1981, while all the promoters together held 15.92 per cent stake at the end of last quarter.