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Tag: BYJU’S

  • Byju’s investors call for EGM to remove founder following rights issue | TechCrunch

    Byju’s investors call for EGM to remove founder following rights issue | TechCrunch


    A group of large investors in Byju’s has called for an extraordinary general meeting seeking to change the leadership at Byju’s days after the edtech group launched a rights issue at $25 million pre-money valuation.

    The consortium of investors said it has called for the EGM following many months of continued efforts to address the persistent issues at Byju’s, which at the time of its last fundraise in 2022 was the most valuable edtech globally.

    “The resolutions being put forward for the EGM to consider include a request for the resolution of the outstanding governance, financial mismanagement and compliance issues; the reconstitution of the Board of Directors, so that it is no longer controlled by the founders of T&L; and a change in leadership of the Company,” a consortium of the investors said in a statement Thursday.

    “The issuance of this EGM notice follows many months of continued efforts by shareholders to engage with the Company to address persistent issues relating to corporate governance, mismanagement and compliance. These efforts have been ongoing following the resignationfrom the Board in June 2023 of directors nominated by Prosus and other shareholders.”

    Prosus, General Atlantic, Peak XV, Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, Owl and Sofina are among those requesting the EGM, a source directly familiar with the situation told TechCrunch.

    Full statement:

    As investors with a track-record in supporting the Indian start-up sector over many years, we are strongly committed to serving the long-term interests of the companies in which we invest and their stakeholders.

    With this in mind, pursuant to the rights granted to shareholders under the Companies Act, 2013, a notice has [today] been issued to Think & Learn Private Limited (T&L) shareholders requesting an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) to address persistent issues. The request for an EGM is supported by a consortium of T&L shareholders and follows earlier notices of requisition sent to the T&L Board of Directors in July and December 2023, which were disregarded.

    The resolutions being put forward for the EGM to consider include a request for the resolution of the outstanding governance, financial mismanagement and compliance issues; the reconstitution of the Board of Directors, so that it is no longer controlled by the founders of T&L; and a change in leadership of the Company.

    The issuance of this EGM notice follows many months of continued efforts by shareholders to engage with the Company to address persistent issues relating to corporate governance, mismanagement and compliance. These efforts have been ongoing following the resignationfrom the Board in June 2023 of directors nominated by Prosus and other shareholders.

    While we are grateful for the efforts of the independent advisory council in addressing some of the looming challenges facing T&L, we are deeply concerned about the future stability of the Company under its current leadership and with the current constitution of the Board.

    We believe wholeheartedly in India and in the transformative role that education technology can play in improving teaching and learning. We also continue to believe in the role and contribution of BYJU’s. As shareholders, we will continue to assert our rights, in collaboration with other shareholders and government authorities to safeguard the long-term interests of the Company and its stakeholders.

    More to follow.



    Manish Singh

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  • Byju’s cuts valuation ask by 99% in rights issue amid cash crunch | TechCrunch

    Byju’s cuts valuation ask by 99% in rights issue amid cash crunch | TechCrunch


    Byju’s, the world’s most valuable edtech startup, has cut its valuation ask by 99% in a rights issue it launched Monday as the Indian firm works to address its working capital needs. The startup is looking to raise $200 million in the rights issue, a capital it said is “essential to prevent any further value impairment.”

    The startup, once India’s most valuable, is resetting its valuation to “next to nothing” in the rights issue, where all existing investors have an opportunity to participate, according to a source familiar with the matter. If Byju’s succeeds in raising $200 million, the post-money valuation of the startup will be in the range of $220 million to $250 million, a 99% drop from the $22 billion value that the startup had attained in 2022, according to the source, who requested anonymity sharing nonpublic information.

    Byju’s founder Byju Raveendran told shareholders in a letter Monday that he and other founders of the edtech group have invested $1.1 billion into the Bengaluru-headquartered startup in the last 18 months and seek continued support from the investors to keep the business afloat. “We have made immense personal sacrifices for the sake of the company. We have spent our lives building this company and are fervent believers in its mission,” Raveendran wrote in the letter, seen by TechCrunch.

    The rights issue comes as Byju’s looks to secure capital amid a severe funding crunch. The startup, which spent $2.5 billion acquiring more than a dozen firm in 2021 and 2022, has raised more than $5 billion in equity and debt from backers including Peak XV, Lightspeed, Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, BlackRock, UBS, Prosus Ventures and B Capital. Byju’s said in a statement that it expects the rights issue to close in 30 days.

    “It has been 21 months since our last external capital raise, during which we have cut our burn and worked to become a lean organization, razor-focused on execution. The board believes it is imperative that the company raises capital in order to create a glidepath to deliver strong shareholder value,” Raveendran wrote in the letter.

    Byju’s is not the only high-profile Indian startup that has struggled to raise capital in recent years. Online pharmacy startup PharmEasy cut its valuation by over 90% to below $600 million in a rights issue last year. The startup had raised over $1.5 billion in equity and debt prior to the rights issue.

    Byju’s has been chasing for new funding for nearly a year. The startup was in final stages to raise about $1 billion last year, but the talks derailed after the auditor Deloitte and three key board members quit the startup. Instead, Byju’s ended up raising less than $150 million in that round from Davidson Kempner and had to repay the investor the full committed amount after making a technical default in a separate $1.2 billion term loan B.

    Byju’s was preparing to go public in early 2022 through a SPAC deal that would have valued the company at up to $40 billion. However, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February sent markets downward, forcing Byju’s to put its IPO plans on hold, according to a source familiar with the matter. As market conditions worsened, so too did the business outlook for Byju’s.



    Manish Singh

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  • Doubtnut, once offered a $150M deal by Byju's, sells for $10M | TechCrunch

    Doubtnut, once offered a $150M deal by Byju's, sells for $10M | TechCrunch

    Allen Career Institute has acquired Doubtnut in a deal that values the young edtech at $10 million, according to a person familiar with the matter, a reversal of fortune for the once promising edtech leading app.

    The two firms confirmed the deal on Monday, but declined to share financial terms of the acquisition. Seven-year-old Doubtnut, whose learning app helps students solve math and science problems by taking photos of them, had raised more than $52 million prior to the acquisition and counted Peak XV Partners and James Murdoch’s Lupa Systems among its backers.

    As the market turned, Doubtnut engaged with many investors including Prosus Ventures but no deal ever materialized over disagreements on valuation, according to people familiar with the matter. In mid-2020, Indian edtech giant Byju’s also attempted to acquire Doubtnut, valuing the young startup at as much as $150 million, TechCrunch reported at the time.

    Doubtnut gained significant attention in 2020 for its use of machine learning and image recognition technology to provide answers in local languages to students, demonstrating an alternative approach to serving students in one of the largest education markets.

    Allen — which helps prepare students looking to crack prestigious exams such as IIT JEE Mains & Advanced, NEET-UG, KVPY and the Olympiads — runs one of the largest coaching institutes in India. The firm competes with Aakash, which Indian edtech giant Byju’s acquired last year for nearly $1 billion. Indian online platform Unacademy, last valued at $3.4 billion, explored acquiring Allen earlier, according to people familiar with the matter.

    Bodhi Tree, another investment fund by Murdoch and media veteran Uday Shankar, invested $600 million in Allen last year, valuing the education institution at over $1 billion.

    “Timely and effective resolution of doubts is a core consumer need in education. Doubtnut’s platform will allow us to greatly enhance the learning experience for our students. We are also excited by the prospects of offering ALLEN’s high quality academic products to a wider audience,” said Nitin Kukreja, CEO of Allen, in a statement.

    Manish Singh

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  • Prosus cuts valuation of Byju’s, India’s most valuable startup, to below $3 billion | TechCrunch

    Prosus cuts valuation of Byju’s, India’s most valuable startup, to below $3 billion | TechCrunch

    Investment giant Prosus has written down the valuation of edtech giant Byju’s to below $3 billion, marking a steep drop from the $22 billion valuation the Indian startup hit just early last year.

    Byju’s is facing many “challenges” and Prosus and other backers are working alongside to aid the Bengaluru-headquartered startup’s recovery, Prosus interim chief executive Ervin Tu said on an earnings call Wednesday after the investment giant reported financial results for the six months to September.

    The write down in Byju’s valuation comes as the Bengaluru-headquartered startup works to restructure operations and cut costs after huge pandemic-era growth left it with surging losses. The news is the latest remarkable turn of fortunes for Byju’s that has raised over $5 billion to date.

    The startup — which also counts Peak XV, Lightspeed India Venture Partners, Sofina, BlackRock, UBS and Chan Zuckerberg Initiative among its backers — missed its revenue target for the financial year ending in March last year, the startup disclosed in a much-delayed account this month. It’s also scrambling to resolve a debt of $1.2 billion and is subject to an ongoing investigation by India’s money-laundering agency Enforcement Directorate, which has accused Byju’s of violating the country’s forex law to the tune of $1.12 billion.

    Byju’s CFO Ajay Goel left the startup in less than seven months to return to Vedanta in late October, following high-profile and abrupt departures of auditor Deloitte and three of Byju’s key board members in June. Prosus publicly slammed the Bengaluru-headquartered startup in July for not evolving sufficiently and disregarding the investor’s advice and recommendations despite repeated attempts.

    Prosus has been proactively adjusting the worth of its holding in Byju’s, in which it owns over 9% stake, for more than a year. Prosus valued Byju’s at $5.1 billion at the end of March.

    A slide from Prosus’ financial results Wednesday. (Image: Prosus)

    Prosus, one of Europe’s most valuable tech companies, identified Byju’s and Pharmeasy, an Indian online pharmacy startup that this year raised capital at a valuation about 90% below its 2021 highs, among the “large underperformers” for the Amsterdam-listed firm.

    The net asset value of Prosus’s holding of its e-commerce portfolio, which features fintech, edtech, food delivery and venture deals, stood at $29 billion at the end of the first half of the financial year 2024, down from $50 billion during the same period two years ago. The IRR fell to 5% in H1 FY24, down from 18% during the same period two years ago, the investment giant said, giving

    Not all is doom in India for Prosus and its vast investments in the country. The firm said Wednesday its payments company PayU is now hopeful for an initial public offering in the second half of 2024 as its operations expand efficiently. Prosus also touted strong growth for leading food delivery startup Swiggy.

    Manish Singh

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  • Byju’s CFO quits in six months amid delayed accounts | TechCrunch

    Byju’s CFO quits in six months amid delayed accounts | TechCrunch

    Byju’s CFO Ajay Goel, who joined the edtech giant in April this year, has already resigned, the two said Tuesday, in the latest setback for the startup that is grappling with scores of challenges. Goel will leave Byju’s after completing the long-delayed audit formalities for the financial year ending March 2022 and return to mining conglomerate Vedanta late this month, Byju’s said.

    Byju’s said it has appointed industry veteran Pradip Kanakia as a senior advisor and elevated Nitin Golani, who currently serves as President of the startup’s finances, as its CFO. “I thank the founders and colleagues at Byju’s for helping me assemble the FY22 audit in three months. I appreciate the support received during a short but impactful stint at Byju’s,” said Goel in a statement.

    Tuesday’s disclosure is the latest slide for Byju’s — India’s most valuable startup which once received a valuation of up to $50 billion from bankers for an IPO — which is facing scores of governance, financial and optics issues.

    The startup is dealing with a group of lenders over a $1.2 billion term-B loan, and fighting another conflict with Davidson Kempner, which had originally agreed to extend as much as $250 million credit to Byju’s but is now instead pushing for a payment over execution of a technical default clause.

    Goel’s departure follows Deloitte quitting the startup in June this year, alongside three of Byju’s key board members. A month later Prosus, which owns more than 9% of Byju’s and is one of its earlier backers, publicly slammed the Bengaluru-headquartered startup for not evolving sufficiently and disregarding the investor’s advice and recommendations despite repeated attempts. (Prosus also marked down Byju’s valuation to $5.1 billion.)

    Deloitte said in its resignation letter in June that Byju’s, which has grown accustomed to delaying the filing of its financial accounts, hadn’t provided “any communication” on the resolution of the audit report for the financial year going as back as the financial year ending March 31, 2021, nor had it given the auditor an update on the status of readiness of the financial statements and the underlying books for the financial year ending March last year.

    Byju’s, which has cut over 10,000 jobs since the market condition turned, has repeatedly also delayed filing the financial account for March 2022. The startup, which spent about $2.5 billion acquiring a range of firms in 2020 and 2021, is also looking to sell many of those businesses to clear dues to its lenders.

    Manish Singh

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  • Byju’s co-founder Divya Gokulnath makes a case for India’s FIFA qualification amid backlash over Messi deal

    Byju’s co-founder Divya Gokulnath makes a case for India’s FIFA qualification amid backlash over Messi deal

    Edtech company Byju’s co-founder Divya Gokulnath has expressed support for India’s qualification for the upcoming FIFA World Cup, saying that the nation has a good chance of making it to the tournament’s final 48 teams.

    In a LinkedIn post, Gokulnath wrote, “Too often we find the label ‘pipe dream’ attached to India’s chances of playing in the FIFA World Cup. I beg to disagree. I am sure India will not only qualify for the World Cup; it will also win it at least once in my lifetime.” She also shared a video by Byju’s which is made on the same lines.

    On FIFA’s list of nations, India is ranked 106th, just ahead of Sierra Leone and Kosovo and below teams like Cyprus, Mauritania, and Guinea-Bissau.

    The FIFA World Cup 2022, which is being held in Qatar, has awarded Byju’s the prestigious and lucrative sponsorship deal.

    Her post comes at a time when the Bengaluru-based company has come under fire for hiring one of the highest-paid footballers in the world, Lionel Messi, as a brand ambassador shortly after firing 2,500 employees in an effort to increase the edtech company’s profitability.

    Divya Gokulnath recently spoke to the media about the Messi contract, explaining that the choice to appoint Messi as the global brand ambassador for its “Education For All” social initiative was motivated by a desire to increase the initiative’s visibility and reach.

    On layoffs, Gokulnath had said, “How much we say and apologise, it is not enough. It would be the last thing that we would want to do but sometimes what Byju and Divya want is not what Byju’s as a company demands.”

    “We did it because this would help us move towards our path to profitability by the fourth quarter of this year. Certain steps had to be taken and they were taken,” she further added.

    Also Read: Byju Raveendran’s wife Divya Gokulnath recalls initial years of starting up, calls last 6 months ‘toughest’

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  • The power of India’s rising youth rests on its empowered teachers

    The power of India’s rising youth rests on its empowered teachers

    Ancient texts, unique gurukul systems, and a rich history define India’s educational heritage. It is the birthplace of Aryabhatta and Sushruta, the land of Nalanda and Takshashila. It has imparted knowledge and inspired the world for centuries. Cut to 21st-century India, the value of education and teachers has only bloomed, with modern pedagogy and technology making way for us to scale new heights in education.

    Today, our classrooms have changed and tech interventions have transformed the way students learn and teachers teach. With personalisation, collaboration, self-learning, multi-format approaches, and gamification, among others, taking centre stage, our learning environment is constantly evolving.

    Ancient wisdom, however, continues to leave its mark on our education ethos. In the gurukul system, essential teachings were in subjects like language, science and mathematics through group discussions and self-learning. Today, these tools are being rekindled for digital learning in the 21st century.

    At the heart of this learning revolution, however, is a robust, skilled, and digitally empowered pool of teachers. They are the builders of a competent and productive nation and drivers of generational impact.  

    Redefining the role of educators

    Despite the multitude of challenges brought on by the pandemic, when teachers quickly adapted to digital methods and new formats it was not only inspiring but also a true indicator of the fact that learning never stops. It enabled students to continue learning seamlessly. With tech-driven approaches, teachers’ roles are no longer restricted to just imparting knowledge; they now have the freedom to extend their traditional responsibilities to further mentor, guide, and support students towards a brighter future.

    Today, highly-qualified teachers anywhere in the world are able to reach millions of students. They are able to transform lessons into experiences and create a generational impact. The future of education is not about technology over teaching but teaching with technology.

    Armed with digital tools like 2D and 3D animations, interactive tests, and quizzes, teachers are able to harness the full potential of edtech. Leveraging elements such as game mechanics and interactive approaches to learning enables healthy competition and keeps students collaboratively involved in the learning process while also assisting teachers to create better learning paths.  

    Emerging digital tools that use AR and VR to provide engaging and interactive learning formats enable teachers to produce effective modules and facilitate language and phonetic understanding, build cognitive skills, and imbibe problem-solving approaches.

    Imagine this: Tech-empowered teachers can provide their students with the opportunity to explore the ruins of ancient cities while studying history, delve into the intricacies of human anatomy while learning about biology, and even bring numbers to life during maths and physics classes. This just goes on to show that while teaching concepts are universal, effective digitisation has the potential to deepen, enhance, and broaden the influence of learning principles; truly unlocking the potential of a student.

    The critical thinkers and problem solvers of tomorrow are being built in today’s classrooms, and teachers are at the forefront. By empowering students with essential skills, teachers are creating a lasting impact in building a future-ready workforce, one that will drive the nation forward through productive output and innovation.

    India’s digital transformation: Time to look ahead

    The 2021 UN Sustainable Development Report states that the COVID-19 pandemic has wiped out 20 years of gains in ensuring equity in education. In India, 80% of children between 14 to 18 years reported low levels of learning during the pandemic. However, tech-driven initiatives are steadily bridging this learning loss, with efforts such as the e-Vidya scheme and a UNESCO report lauding India’s investments in digital resources during the pandemic.

    Hybrid learning is one such disruption. Bringing together the best of offline and online learning experiences through offerings such as BYJU’S ‘two-teacher model’, (where one expert teacher uses strong visuals and storytelling to explain topics and the second teacher solves instant doubts and pays individual attention), is completely transforming classroom dynamics. These formats not only enable teachers to incorporate valuable digital learning resources but also provide critical offline educational experiences like student interaction, doubt resolution, as well as academic and emotional support.

    Every student deserves an equal opportunity to learn regardless of their socioeconomic standing, geography, or level of education, and having digitally-empowered teachers is an essential component of this process.

    As technologies advance, so will the classrooms of the future and the scope to affect change is limitless. Tech-empowered teachers have the power to greatly expand educational opportunities in the country. By bringing together our tech talent with our inherent expertise in teaching, we can truly see India emerge as a true ‘Vishwaguru’.

    Only by making strategic investments in the wide talent pool of teachers and digital infrastructure can we lay the roadmap for India’s youth to be the powerhouse of knowledge and build learning solutions that scale and modernise education for the 21st century.

    (The author is Sr. Vice President of Curriculum and Learning Experience at BYJU’S)

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