Facebook enemy Divya Narendra sets new 'mark' as IPO looms

NEW DELHI: Divya Narendra is named as an 'enemy' on whoownsfacebook.com, a website that lists the shareholders of Facebook. This enemy is now looking to count his spoils of war.

If the social networking site gets a valuation of $100 billion in its upcoming initial public offer, Narendra will be richer by about $20 million. The Harvard-educated Indian-American has held a 0.022% stake in Facebook since 2008 as part of his settlement with founder Mark Zuckerberg.

Narendra, along with twins Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, had claimed that Zuckerberg had stolen their original idea of Harvard Connection (later called ConnectU) to launch Facebook. In an unlikely 'friend request' to FB, Narendra wishes it a successful IPO.

"I will say that as a Facebook shareholder, I hope the IPO goes well, along with the company's fundamental operating performance," Narendra told ET in an email interview. While the value of Narendra's stake pales in comparison with Zuckerberg's $20-billion holding, he says he has a lot to achieve as an entrepreneur.

Although his start-up, ConnectU, was shut as part of the settlement with Facebook in 2008, FB's success story is incomplete without the story of Narendra's failures. The 29-year-old's life has been acted out in the Oscar-nominated The Social Network.

Narendra's legal showdown with Zuckerberg led him to the Northwestern University, where he is pursuing a joint degree at the School of Law and the Kellogg School of Management.

"The lawsuit certainly gave me an early life lesson on the importance of understanding the law. The knowledge and network gained through both schools have also had a tangible impact on my entrepreneurial efforts," he said.

Narendra's business focus is SumZero, a website he set up in 2008, which lets hedge fund analysts and investment professionals share ideas, get jobs and network.