Byju Raveendran, founder of edtech Byju’s, is in talks to raise his stake in the company to as high as 40%, according to a report by Bloomberg. This could be estimated to be as much as 15% of the company’s stake.
Byju’s is an Indian multinational educational technology company, headquartered in Bangalore, Karnataka, India. It was founded in 2011 by Byju Raveendran and Divya Gokulnath.
Byju Raveendran is reported to be seeking funds to finance the buyback by using his shares as collateral. According to the report, discussions with shareholders and financiers are still in early stages and may yet fall apart.
Earlier the educational technology (edtech) company denied charges that it purchased students’ databases and clarified that it relies on app users, walk-ins and incoming requests for consultation. Byju’s clarified this against the backdrop of summons issued to the company by child rights body National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR).
The former owner Byju Raveendran is seeking funding to finance the stake repurchases, which could amount upto 15% of the company by using his shares as collateral, according to the people. Byju’s was valued at $22 billion the last time it raised funds.
Currently, Raveendran Byju has about 25% stake in the edtech company along with other investors. Byju’s recently released its audited results for the financial year ended March 2021 in September 2022, after 18 months. The company readjusted its revenue from operations to Rs 2,280 crore even as it incurred massive losses of Rs 4,588 crore, up from just Rs 262 crore in the previous fiscal.
This was a drop of 48% in the revenue which Raveendran said was because of the changes in the environment due to COVID-19.
