DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ India’s booming tech sector suffers a big blow as Byju’s and Paytm plunge into crisis
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-07 | by ( Sheila Chiang | In Sheilachiang | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

A subsequent audit "revealed persistent non-compliances and continued material supervisory concerns in the bank," the central bank said on Jan. 31. Yet to be profitable, Paytm is also reportedly being probed by the federal anti-fraud agency on possible violations of foreign exchange laws. On Feb. 26, One97 Communications, the parent company of Paytm, said in an exchange filing that founder and CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma had resigned from the board of Paytm Payments Bank. During the pandemic, Paytm capitalized on the digital payments boom in India, reporting a 3.5 times growth in transactions. SoftBank and Ant Group are now reportedly cutting their stakes in the payments company, according to local media.

Persons: Anindito Mukerjee, There's, Karan Mohla, Paytm, Vijay Shekhar Sharma, SoftBank Organizations: Bloomberg, Getty, B Capital, Reserve Bank of India, One97 Communications, Paytm Payments, Alibaba, Ant, Ant Group Locations: Greater Noida, India

☆ The rise and fall of Byju's, once a startup darling in India
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-01 | by ( Sheila Chiang | In Sheilachiang | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Signage at a Byju's Tuition Center, operated by Think & Learn Pvt., in Mumbai, India, on Friday, Feb. 2, 2024. It was most recently slashed to $1 billion, after BlackRock downsized its holdings in Byju's last month, according to media reports. Last Friday, major Byju's shareholders, including Netherlands-based global investment group Prosus, voted to oust founder Byju Raveendran as chief executive officer. Investors who attended an extraordinary general meeting "unanimously passed all resolutions put forward for vote," which also sought to change the board, according to a statement Prosus sent CNBC. "As the founders did not participate in the meeting, the quorum was never legitimately established, rendering the resolutions null and void."

Persons: Dhiraj Singh, Prosus, Byju Raveendran, Byju's Organizations: Bloomberg, Getty, BlackRock, Investors, CNBC, Honorable Karnataka Locations: Mumbai, India, Byju's, Netherlands, Bengaluru

☆ India's Byju's founder pledges homes for funds to pay staff- Bloomberg News
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Byju's logo is seen in this illustration taken, June 22, 2023. The infusion of funds would help pay 15,000 employees in the embattled company's parent firm, Think & Learn Pvt., the report added. The company is facing a string of setbacks, including investors cutting its valuation and its auditor and board members quitting. Reuters reported in November that India's federal financial crime-fighting agency had issued a show-cause notice to Byju's for alleged violations worth over 93 billion rupees ($1.12 billion) under the Foreign Exchange Management Act(FEMA). ($1 = 83.3480 Indian rupees)Reporting by Ashna Teresa Britto in Bengaluru; Editing by Sohini GoswamiOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Byju Raveendran, founder's, Ashna Teresa Britto, Sohini Goswami Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Bloomberg, Reuters, Foreign Exchange Management, FEMA, Thomson Locations: Indian, Bengaluru

☆ Prosus cuts India's Byju's valuation to under $3 billion
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration Acquire Licensing RightsMUMBAI, Nov 29 (Reuters) - Tech investor Prosus NV (PRX.AS) said on Wednesday it was valuing Indian education firm Byju's at under $3 billion, 86% less than its peak valuation of $22 billion last year, after the company struggled with governance and cash-flow problems. The disclosure, made by interim CEO Ervin Tu during Prosus earnings call, is the latest cut to Byju's valuation after several executives and board members quit and it delayed filing its 2021/22 financial results by a year. Over the past year, shareholders including Prosus and Blackrock have successively cut Byju's valuation to $11 billion in March, $8 billion in May and $5 billion in June. It has delayed publishing its financial results, prompting auditor Deloitte and three board members quit in June. Byju's filed the delayed but incomplete financial results earlier this month, and is looking to sell off entire business lines to raise cash.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Ervin Tu, Prosus, Byju's, Sriram, Aditya Kalra, Miral Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Tech, Prosus NV, Prosus, Blackrock, Atlantic, Deloitte, Thomson Locations: Rights MUMBAI, Silver

☆ How $7 billion Maverick Capital values its private portfolio — and which unicorns have lost their luster
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-15 | by ( Bradley Saacks | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Maverick Capital wasn't immune to the private market turmoil that has tanked start-ups and crushed venture capital returns. Like many private investors, Maverick has marked down some of its investments internally as higher interest rates have put pressure on money-losing start-ups. Snapdocs, according to Maverick, should no longer be considered a unicorn, valuing the online mortgage processing company at $628 million. Maverick, which runs a $1.4 billion venture and growth fund, is bullish on a few of its companies, though — even raising their valuations despite the overall market turbulence. Brazilian digital rental marketplace company QuintoAndar is worth 20% more now than when Maverick invested at the end of 2021.

Persons: Lee Ainslie, Maverick, — Organizations: Maverick, Cub, Business

☆ Byju's co-founder on the Indian tech startup's turnaround plan
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-14 | by ( Arjun Kharpal | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailByju's co-founder on the Indian tech startup's turnaround planDivya Gokulnath, co-founder of Indian education technology startup Byju's, talks about the company's turnaround plans after it has faced a number of issues including auditing troubles and debt repayments.

Persons: Gokulnath

A man walks past an advertising hoarding of Byju's, an Education Technology company and one of India's biggest startup, outside one of its branch in New Delhi, India, June 23, 2023. Byju's parent Think & Learn's operating losses fell 6% to 24 billion Indian rupees ($288.67 million) for its core online education business, while revenue more than doubled to 35.5 billion Indian rupees ($426.99 million) for the year ended March 31, 2022. "The takeaways from a uniquely belligerent year, which included nine acquisitions, are life-long learnings," Raveendran said in a statement. Last September, Byju's filed its 2021 numbers after a 17-month delay. ($1 = 83.1400 Indian rupees)Reporting by M. Sriram; Editing by Michael PerryOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Adnan Abidi, Byju Raveendran, Raveendran, Byju's, MBAs, Sriram, Michael Perry Organizations: Education Technology, REUTERS, Rights, Deloitte, Atlantic, Reuters, Thomson Locations: New Delhi, India, Rights MUMBAI, Prosus, Blackrock

☆ SchoolMint cuts 14.5% of staff in a second round of layoffs this year, as the forecast for edtech startups looks uncertain
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-05 | by ( Madeline Renbarger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The edtech startup SchoolMint, which helps public schools and charter schools increase and manage student enrollment, cut 29 full-time staff members last week, or 14.5% of staff, Insider has learned. According to multiple sources familiar with the layoffs, this was not the first time this year SchoolMint has eliminated head count. Before these cuts, there were over 250 employees at SchoolMint, according to sources and LinkedIn data. The layoffs at SchoolMint come at an uncertain time for the edtech market, as the sector's pandemic-induced capital boom has seen an increasing slowdown. SchoolMint itself has not been immune to this uncertainty in the broader edtech market.

Persons: SchoolMint, It's Organizations: NewSchools Venture Fund, Reach, Investment Partners Locations: SchoolMint, Silicon Valley, Lafayette , Louisiana

☆ India's Byju's to merge businesses, slash around 5,500 jobs – ET
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

People walk past an advertising hoarding of Byju's, an Education Technology company and one of India's biggest startup, outside one of its branch in New Delhi, India, June 23, 2023. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSept 26 (Reuters) - Indian education firm Byju's plans to cut around 5,500 jobs to decrease costs amid a restructuring of its business, the Economic Times reported on Tuesday. The firm, valued at $22 billion last year, has experienced a series of business setbacks, including its auditor and board members quitting. In the last few months, it has also been negotiating the repayment of a $1.2 billion loan. (This story has been corrected to change Arjun Mohan's designation to say CEO of Byju's India business, not the company, in paragraph 2)Reporting by Shivani Tanna in Bengaluru; Editing by Pooja Desai私たちの行動規範：トムソン・ロイター「信頼の原則」

Persons: Adnan Abidi, Arjun Mohan, Byju's, Arjun, Shivani Tanna, Pooja Desai 私 Organizations: Education Technology, REUTERS, Economic Times Locations: New Delhi, India, Bengaluru

☆ Byju's business head resigns amid reorganisation at Indian startup
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

A man walks past an advertising hoarding of Byju's, an Education Technology company and one of India's biggest startup, outside one of its branch in New Delhi, India, June 23, 2023. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsBENGALURU, Aug 29 (Reuters) - Byju's Chief Business Officer, Prathyusha Agarwal, and two other senior executives have resigned as the struggling Indian ed-tech startup restructures its business and operations, a company spokesperson said on Tuesday. Two other business heads - Himanshu Bajaj and Mukut Deepak - have also left, the company, once India's most valuable startup, said. Byju's has let go of thousands of employees this year as it grapples with multiple legal and financial woes. Reuters has reported that Byju's will file 2022 audited earnings by September and 2023 results by December.

Persons: Adnan Abidi, Prathyusha Agarwal, Agarwal, Himanshu Bajaj, Mukut Deepak, BYJU'S, Moneycontrol, Byju's, Mohandas Pai, Rajnish Kumar, Pranav Kiran, Navamya Ganesh, Nivedita Organizations: Education Technology, REUTERS, Rights, Byju's, Zee Entertainment Enterprises, Prosus NV, Deloitte, Reuters, State Bank of India, Thomson Locations: New Delhi, India, Bengaluru

☆ The edtech startup funding slowdown may be hitting the 'bottom of the market'
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-08 | by ( Madeline Renbarger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Edtech venture capital funding in 2023 may be on pace for its lowest annual total since 2016. The one exception to this edtech funding dropoff is in AI tools for education and upskilling. This puts the estimated total funding for 2023 at only $3.5 billion, the lowest annual total since 2016, according to HolonIQ. Additionally, there has not been a single edtech "mega round," or a startup funding round valued at over $100 million since 2022, with the exception of the Indian edtech unicorn Byju's $250 million fundraise this spring. Pujji and Mushin also indicated that AI edtech deals were the exception in this slowdown period.

Persons: VCs, It's, Vinny Pujji, Iynna Halilou, Leeor Mushin, Avalanche's Katelyn Donnelly, Mushin, they've, Chegg's, Cheggmate, Khan, Pujji Organizations: Left Lane Capital, Global, Bloomberg, Investors

☆ Byju’s blowup makes its investors look bad
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-07 | by ( Pranav Kiran | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Adnan Abidi/File Photo/File PhotoBENGALURU, Aug 7 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Byju’s says it provides learning programs to over 150 million students. The biggest lesson may be for the Indian education giant’s global investors including Prosus (PRX.AS) and Peak XV, formerly part of Sequoia, who watched founder power run amok in a country they have pinned high hopes on. But so long as the blowup at the hot startup once valued at $22 billion goes from bad to worse, its backers will struggle to create enough distance. For early supporter Peak XV Partners, the mess comes at a sensitive time, hot on the heels of announcing a separation from its U.S. parent. Representatives of the Amsterdam-listed investor and Peak XV Partners, formerly Sequoia’s India unit, both quit Byju’s board in June.

Persons: Adnan Abidi, Byju Raveendran, Davidson, Byju’s, Reuters Breakingviews, Prosus, Una Galani, Thomas Shum Organizations: REUTERS, Reuters, Bloomberg, XV Partners, HK, Thomson Locations: New Delhi, India, BENGALURU, Sequoia, U.S, Byju’s, Amsterdam, China, Delaware

☆ Paper, the online tutoring unicorn, just had a second round of layoffs. The cuts come a year-and-a-half after raising $270 million in Series D funding.
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-02 | by ( Madeline Renbarger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Paper, an edtech unicorn focused on online tutoring for K-12 students, has laid off staff. The cuts come as edtech startups are facing increasing pressure amid a downturn. The Canadian online tutoring startup Paper has laid off 106 employees, or 4% of staff, Insider has learned. Unlike other online tutoring companies, the bulk of the startup's online tutors are categorized as employees, not contractors, according to Paper's website. Other prominent edtech startups including Byju's, GoStudent, and Degreed have also cut jobs in the past year.

Persons: Slack, we've, Cutler Organizations: Employees, SoftBank Investment, Sapphire Ventures, Los Angeles Unified Locations: Canada, Los Angeles

☆ India's Byju's seeks investors for Aakash Education stake, ET Now reports
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BENGALURU, June 30 (Reuters) - Embattled Indian edtech startup Byju's is looking for investors to sell a part of its stake in the educational institute Aakash Education Services, television news channel ET Now reported on Friday, citing sources. Byju's holding company, Think and Learn (THIK.NS), is looking to dilute up to 20% of its total 70% equity stake in Aakash Education, sources told ET Now. The company bought Aakash Education for $950 million in 2021. The talks with prospective investors are early and preliminary, the broadcaster reported in a tweet. The reported plans of stake offloading come as a sharp contrast to the edtech's earlier plans of listing Aakash Education through an IPO by mid-2024.

Persons: Byju's, Hritam Mukherjee, Eileen Soreng Organizations: Education Services, Aakash Education, Deloitte, Thomson Locations: BENGALURU, Bengaluru

The hectic pace of activity comes after private credit funds targeting Asia jumped 76% last year to a record $11.2 billion, driven by both regional and India-dedicated strategies, according to Global Private Capital Association. As large global sponsors continue to invest into multi-billion dollar Asia-focused credit funds such as Apollo, Blackstone and KKR, the Asian private credit industry is set for further boom, Robert Wright, partner in law firm Baker McKenzie, said. The string of new private credit funds come against the backdrop of startups facing the threat of having down rounds. Nevertheless, alternative financing such as private credit does not come cheap, industry experts warned. Private credit firms usually arrange loans, with assets secured, on a floating rate basis.

Persons: GPCA, Singapore's SeaTown, Europe's 21yield, Nicholas Mairone, Robert Wright, Baker McKenzie, SeaTown, Rakshat Kapoor, Camille Krejci, Parthiv Rishi, Sidley Austin, Siew Kam Boon, Yantoultra Ngui, Sumeet Chatterjee Organizations: Asia, SINGAPORE, Global Private Capital Association . Industry, Silicon Valley Bank, Blackstone, KKR, Reuters Graphics, Bain Capital, India's, Mahindra Bank, Hong Kong's ADM, SoftBank Investment Advisers, Reuters, Prosus NV, Thomson Locations: Asia, India, Singapore, United States, North America, Silicon, Pacific, Japan, Hong Kong

☆ Prosus slashes India's Byju's valuation to $5 bln
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BENGALURU, June 27 (Reuters) - Dutch-listed technology investor Prosus NV (PRX.AS) has slashed the valuation of troubled Indian edtech startup Byju's to $5.1 billion according to its annual report, a fall of more than 75% from the startup's $22 billion valuation last year. Byju's told investors it will file 2022 audited earnings by September and 2023 results by December, Reuters reported. Earlier this year, Blackrock, too, had cut Byju's valuation to $8.3 billion. India's Employee Provident Fund Organisation on Tuesday observed a shortfall in payments from Byju's, Reuters reported. Byju's deposited 1.23 billion rupees ($15.01 million) after the EPFO asked it to.

Persons: Prosus, Byju's, Manvi, Sriram, Pooja Desai Organizations: Prosus NV, Atlantic, BlackRock, Deloitte, Reuters, Blackrock, India's, Provident Fund, Thomson Locations: BENGALURU, Byju's, U.S, Blackrock, Manvi Pant, Bengaluru, Mumbai

☆ India's Byju's seeks to raise $1 bln to stave off investor revolt - Bloomberg News
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

June 27 (Reuters) - Indian edtech startup Byju's is in advanced talks with potential new shareholders to raise $1 billion in funding as it attempts to sidestep a revolt by some investors, Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday, citing sources familiar with the matter. Reuters could not immediately verify if existing shareholders in Byju's have that option. It was not clear if founder Byju Raveendran will ultimately secure a capital influx, the sources, who asked not to be named as the information isn't public, told Bloomberg News. Byju's and its lenders are involved in legal cases in the United States over the restructuring of the loan. Reporting by Mrinmay Dey and Varun Vyas in Bengaluru; Editing by Sonia Cheema and Nivedita BhattacharjeeOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Chan, Byju Raveendran, Byju's, Mrinmay Dey, Varun, Sonia Cheema Organizations: Bloomberg, Prosus NV, Zuckerberg, Deloitte, Reuters, Bloomberg News, Varun Vyas, Thomson Locations: Byju's, United States, Bengaluru

☆ Byju's staff say morale waning amid turmoil at Indian edtech firm
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-25 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

A boy walks past an hoarding of Byju's IAS coaching center in New Delhi, India on June 24, 2023. Fresh troubles at Indian edtech startup Byju's this week have escalated concerns among employees who were already uncertain about their future after several rounds of job-cuts, more than a dozen current and former staff told Reuters. Everyone wants to leave desperately before they are asked to pack up overnight," said a senior manager at Byju's, requesting anonymity. Several employees, all of whom requested anonymity, said they had received no memos about the exits of auditor Deloitte and the board members. A Byju's spokesperson did not respond to Reuters queries on staff morale, the lack of communication from management or other issues raised by employees.

Persons: Byju's Organizations: Reuters, Deloitte Locations: New Delhi, India, Bengaluru

The resignations of GV Ravishankar of Peak XV Partners, earlier Sequoia Capital India, Russell Dreisenstock of Prosus, and Chan Zuckerberg Initiative's Vivian Wu mean Byju's board now only comprises the founder's family. In a statement to Reuters on Friday, Byju's said it is in discussions with investors about reshaping the board, including the addition of independent directors. A "few" investors had to vacate their board seats as their shareholding dropped below the required minimum threshold, necessitating a board reshuffle, it said. The confirmation of the resignations comes after Reuters and other media outlets reported on Thursday that three Byju's board members had quit recently. On Friday, sources told Reuters that the edtech was asking its three global investors to reconsider their decision to quit its board.

Persons: Russell Dreisenstock, Chan Zuckerberg, Vivian Wu, Byju's, Akriti Sharma, Shivani Tanna, Shounak Dasgupta, Anil D'Silva Organizations: GV, XV Partners, Sequoia Capital, Blackrock, Reuters, Deloitte, Thomson Locations: Sequoia, Sequoia Capital India, Bengaluru

Byju's leadership is in talks with the investors to try to convince them to reverse their decision, the three sources, who declined to be named as the talks are private, told Reuters. Its rise was seen as a boost for India's startup scene as investors including General Atlantic made big bets on Byju's. Two of the sources said the investors took the decision collectively to resign from the board as they were not getting answers from Byju's founder and senior management. The departures mean Byju's board is now only made up of its founder and chief executive Byju Raveendran, his wife Divya Gokulnath, and his brother Riju Raveendran. While the investors are holding talks with Byju's, it has not yet been decided whether or not their decision to resign would change, one of the sources added.

Persons: Chan Zuckerberg, Byju's, Byju Raveendran, Divya Gokulnath, Riju Raveendran, Aditya Kalra, Alexander Smith Organizations: Peak XV Partners, Sequoia Capital, Deloitte, Reuters, Byju's, General Atlantic, Thomson Locations: DELHI, Sequoia Capital India, U.S

☆ Byju's CEO assures company's compliance after raids over alleged forex law violations
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-30 | by ( Aditya Kalra | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

India's Enforcement Directorate raided three premises linked to the company on Saturday over alleged foreign exchange law violations. The searches revealed that Byju's parent firm Think & Learn Pvt Ltd had received foreign direct investment of nearly 280 billion rupees ($3.43 billion) between 2011 and 2023, the agency said on Saturday. The agency also said that the company remitted 97.5 billion rupees to various foreign jurisdictions between 2011 and 2023 in the name of overseas direct investments. In the internal memo, Raveendran said that the company had sent some money overseas to fund its international acquisitions. The company had taken all efforts to comply with foreign exchange laws and all cross-border transactions were routed through regular banking channels, he added.

☆ CEO of India's Byju assures company's compliance after raids over alleged forex law violations
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-30 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Byju Raveendran, founder and chief executive officer of Think and Learn Pvt., speaks during the Credit Suisse Asian Investment Conference in Hong Kong on March 26, 2019. Indian education platform Byju's CEO is confident that the country's financial crime-fighting agency will find the company compliant after raids on its premises over suspected breaches of foreign exchange laws, according to an internal memo. Byju's is one of India's biggest startups, once valued at $22 billion. It has attracted global investors such as General Atlantic, BlackRock and Sequoia Capital, which have invested in the company over the years. Byju's did not respond immediately to a request for comment.

☆ India probes education platform Byju's over alleged forex law violations
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

April 29 (Reuters) - India's financial crime-fighting agency said on Saturday it had raided three premises linked to education platform Byju's and its billionaire CEO Byju Raveendran over suspected breaches of the country's foreign exchange laws. The searches under alleged foreign exchange law violations revealed that Think and Learn Private Limited, Byju's parent firm, had received foreign direct investment of nearly 280 billion rupees ($3.43 billion) during the period from 2011 to 2023, ED said. Byju's legal spokesperson said the visit by ED officials to one of the company's offices in Bengaluru was related to a routine inquiry under foreign exchange laws. The company reported a loss of 45.64 billion rupees ($558.49 million) in May for fiscal 2021. Byju's spent $2.5 billion in fiscal year ended March 2022 to acquire companies such as Aakash, U.S.-based Epic, kids' coding platform Tynker, professional education firm Great Learning and exam perpetration platform Toppr.

☆ India probes education platform Byju's over forex laws
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 29 (Reuters) - India's financial crime-fighting agency said on Saturday it had raided three premises of billionaire Byju Raveendran, the founder and CEO of education platform Byju's, over suspected breaches of the country's foreign exchange laws. Blackrock last month cut Byju's valuation by nearly half to $11.15 billion, according to a filing seen by Reuters. Byju's legal spokesperson said the visit by ED officials to one of the company's offices in Bangalore was related to a routine inquiry under foreign exchange laws. The statement issued by the agency said the company also remitted 97.5 billion rupees to various foreign jurisdictions between 2011 and 2023 in the name of overseas direct investments. Byju's spokesperson said the company had provided authorities with all the information they requested.

Bharadwaj, a former India managing director of Sequoia Capital who now leads venture capital firm A91 Partners. Indian VC firm Blume Ventures said in an April report consumption outside the top 30 million Indian households dropped sharply, and is driven by a "tiny superuser set". "Indian startups are not catering to a billion consumers. And only 271 Indian startups raised funding in Q1 2023, compared with 561 last year, according to CB Insights. It invested $3 billion in Indian companies in 2021 and another $500 million in 2022, by April that year, Reuters calculations show.

Organizations: & & .

Search resuls for: "Byju's"

25 mentions found