Troubled Byju's misses target to amend its $1.2 billion loan terms

By Reshmi Basu and Anto Antony

Beleaguered ed-tech firm Byju’s missed yet another target date set by its creditors to amend terms of a $1.2 billion debt, adding fresh challenges to the Indian borrower’s efforts to resolve disputes around the loan. 
 

The company failed to decide on revisions sought by lenders in the loan’s terms, including part repayment and higher interest payments, by the latest agreed-upon date of Aug. 3, people familiar with the matter said. Meanwhile, a creditors’ lawsuit against Byju’s as part of the dispute is coming up for trial in a US court Friday.

A panel of creditors, who together own more than 85% of the term loan, and Byju’s had agreed to work toward a “signed and completed” amendment before Thursday, the lenders said last month. Meeting the deadline would have avoided further enforcement actions from the financiers and ended the legal dispute.

“No deadline has been missed as Aug. 3 was merely a hopeful date likely to be scheduled for a sign-off,” a spokesperson for Byju’s said in an emailed statement. The discussions are progressing well and talks are expected to close at the earliest, according to the statement.

A representative for the creditors declined to comment.

Byju’s has missed multiple deadlines to rework the debt, the people said, asking not to be named as the information is private. Its dollar-denominated loan due in 2026 is quoting at 50 cents on the dollar, down from 62 cents at the start of the week, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

The company, once the world’s most valuable edtech firm, has faced a series of crises in recent months as its auditors quit, India’s anti-money laundering officials searched its offices, and several directors from its board resigned.