Page 10 - Edtech

Byju's unable to pay salaries as funds locked amid rift with investors

Byju's founder Byju Raveendran on Saturday said the edtech company will not be able to pay salaries to employees as the recent funds raised through a rights issue are inaccessible due to a legal dispute with certain investors. In a letter to staff, Raveendran said the rights issue, launched a month ago, has been successfully closed. "This was supposed to be a happy correspondence. After all, we now have funds to meet our short-term needs and clear our liabilities. However, I regret to inform you that we will still be unable to process your salaries," he said. In the letter - seen by PTI - Raveendran said the company is still striving to ensure that salaries are paid by March 10. "We shall make these payments the moment we are permitted to do so as per law," he added. Further, Raveendran said that last month, the company faced challenges due to a lack of capital, and "now we are experiencing a delay despite having funds". "Unfortunately, a select few (4 out of our 150 plus investo

Edtech major upGrad appoints Venkatesh Tarakkad as chief financial officer

Tarakkad will be responsible for overseeing upGrad's domestic and global financial strategies

Tough test: Staff salaries may again be hit at edtech major Byju's

NCLT has asked Byju's to keep funds via rights issue in escrow account and it cannot be withdrawn till the disposal of the matter, according to the sources

Blume Ventures invests $10 million in edtech firm Interview Kickstart

This is Blume Ventures' largest opening investment to date and is a clear vote of confidence in Interview Kickstart's vision, market leadership, and demonstrated profitable growth, the company said

The spectacular flameout of Byju's

Byju Raveendran set up Think & Learn in 2011, got his first funding in 2013 and launched The Learning App in 2015, which became a case study at Harvard Business School

Edtech major Byju's faces long legal battle as CEO digs in heels: Experts

This may also negatively impact the edtech giant's operations and market reputation, according to industry sources and legal experts

Controversy over EGM results adds to edtech major Byju's troubles

The meeting was called by some leading investors such as Prosus and General Atlantic and there were seven resolutions at the EGM

Will continue as CEO of Byju's, EGM a farce: Raveendran tells employees

Raveendran also told employees that he is not taking any of the investor allegations lying down and will challenge these illegal and prejudicial actions, according to a letter sent to the staff

Continue to remain CEO; rumours of my firing inaccurate: Byju Raveendran

A day after investors of the troubled edtech firm Byju's voted for a leadership change, Byju Raveendran has penned a note to employees saying he continues to remain CEO and the management remains unchanged, as he dubbed Friday's EGM as a "farce". The note to employees assumes significance as it comes after Byju's shareholders (prominent investors) on Friday voted for removing Founder-CEO Raveendran and his family from the board over alleged "mismanagement and failures" at what was once India's hottest tech startup, but the company dug in its heels, calling the voting done in absence of founders as invalid and ineffective. In a note to employees on Saturday, Raveendran alleged that a lot of essential rules were "violated" at Friday's Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM). "This means that whatever was decided in that meeting does not count, because it didn't stick to the established rules... It is crucial for everyone to understand the specific issues that make this EGM a farce," he ..

Byju's crisis: Employees share stories of uncertainty, financial strain

Some say they have moved to other edtech firms at lower salaries; some have exited the sector

Startup & family business governance

Boards must rely on and act upon early warning signals of behavioural aberrations beyond the boundaries of business sanity and neeyat

Byju's spectacular meltdown

The edtech major promised a learning revolution, offering hope to millions of under-educated youth. Now, those dreams are shattered

Byju's EGM gets underway: Raveendran skips, investors file suit before NCLT

A group of four investors of Byju's has filed an oppression and mismanagement suit against the management of the company before the Bengaluru bench of the NCLT, seeking declaring of founders, including CEO Byju Raveendran, as unfit to run the company, and appointing a new board. Besides, the suit has sought declaring the just concluded rights issue as void. Investors, who are seeking the ouster of Raveendran and family from the Byju's board at an extraordinary general meeting of shareholders for alleged "mismanagement and failures" at what was once India's hottest tech startup, have also sought a forensic audit of the company in the plea filed before the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) on Thursday evening, according to a court filing. As per the filing, the investors have sought declaring the present management as unfit to run the company and appointing of a new CEO and a new board. The plea also wants a forensic audit and a direction to the management to share information wit

Byju's founder, his family won't attend EGM called by investors on Feb 23

The current board of Byju's parent, Think and Learn, including Raveendran, his wife and Byju's co-founder Divya Gokulnath, and his brother Riju Ravindran will also not attend the EGM

Byju's shareholders to vote on resolution to ouster CEO, family on Friday

Amidst financial turbulence at Byju's, a group of key investors at the edtech have called for an extraordinary general meeting on Friday to oust its founder CEO Byju Raveendran and his family members over "mismanagement and failures" at what was once India's hottest tech startups, sources said. The shareholders, who have called the EGM, collectively hold more than 30 per cent stake in Byju's. Raveendran and family own about 26 per cent in the company. The sources in the know said the Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) notice calls for ouster of the current board of Think & Learn, the firm that operates Byju's, composed of Raveendran, his wife and co-founder Divya Gokulnath and his brother Riju Ravindran. Detailing the reasons for seeking the ouster, the notice listed alleged financial mismanagement, erosion of value due to management's failure to enforce the company's legal rights and concealment of material information. Earlier this month, South Africa's Prosus, Peak XV Partners

Committed to restructuring board: Raveendran tells Byju's shareholders

To increase shareholder representation, the CEO of the embattled edtech firm committed to restructuring the Board and appointing two non-executive directors

Byju Raveendran says company's $200 million rights issue fully subscribed

Raveendran said that Byju's will appoint a third-party agency to monitor the usage of funds raised in the rights issue

Byju's controversies: The troubles hurting India's biggest edtech company

How did Edtech firm fall from the grace that it once enjoyed with the valuation peaking at $22 billion. Explained

Edtech major Byju's rights issue gets $300 million commitment: Report

Edtech major Think and Learn, which operates under BYJU'S brand name, is learnt to have received a commitment of USD 300 million from investors for its ongoing rights issue which will close by the end of February, sources aware of the development said. BYJU'S floated a rights issue in January to raise USD 200 million through equity rights issue at an enterprise valuation in the range of USD 220-250 million which is a 99 per cent reduction in its peak valuation of USD 22 billion. Sources also shared that BYJU'S has offered miffed investors to appoint two independent directors to enhance transparency but only after the rights issue and declaring its financial result for the 2023 fiscal. "BYJU'S has received a total commitment of around USD 300 million for the rights as on date. Some investors have also suggested increasing the rights issue size but the priority for the company is to close the existing issue successfully," said a source. The source said that negotiation is also on wit

UpGrad's founder blames Raveendran, investors for current state of Byju's

Speaking at the second edition of the ASU+GSV & Emeritus Summit in Gurugram, he emphasized that "one rotten apple" should not affect the entire edtech sector