Byju's in talks to raise up to $700 mn, valuation may cross $15 bn

The funding is expected to help Byju's to fund its acquisitions, including the up to $700 million deal to buy Aakash Educational Services, according to sources

Edtech start-up Byju’s is in talks to raise $500-700 million from new and existing investors in a fresh funding round, which, if successful, would lift the Bengaluru-based firm’s valuation to about $15 billion from $12 billion at present, sources close to the development said. 

Byju’s is closing in on Paytm, which is the most valuable start-up in the country with a valuation of about $16 billion. 

According to people in the know, Byju’s is in discussions with new investors based in the US and West Asia such as Baring Partners and B Capital, and Malaysia’s sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional. It is also in talks with existing investors such as Qatar Investment Authority, General Atlantic, Tiger Global, Naspers, and Sequoia. “However, existing investors may come into the picture only during the secondary sale of the shares,” said a person.  

The news about Byju’s fundraising plans was first reported by Entrackr, a platform that tracks tech companies. 

Byju’s declined to comment on the development.

The funding was expected to help Byju’s to fund its acquisitions. The firm is seeking to close the deal to acquire exam preparation firm Aakash Educational Services soon. The deal, valued at $700-800 million, would be the biggest in the education space once closed, said sources.  

Byju’s has been on a fundraising spree since last year. The pandemic helped it become a decacorn (a company valued at over $10 billion). The company founded by Byju Raveen­dran has raised about $2.1 billion from investors. It is also backed by investors such as the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI), founded by Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Dr Priscilla Chan.