Byju’s, BCCI settle payment dispute

Embattled Byu’s has reached an agreement with the Indian cricket board BCCI to settle their dispute over the payment of Rs 158 crore, reports CNBCTV18.

The edtech company has already paid Rs 50 crore to the BCCI while the rest of the money will be released in two tranches by August 9, the report added. It’s worth noting that the payment is being made by Riju Raveendran, who is the younger brother of edtech billionaire Byju Raveendran and co-founder of Byju’s.

NDTV Profit reports that the NCLAT has asked the edtech firm to give an undertaking that the money released to the cricket board is not siphoned money.

The settlement brings a minor respite to the edtech company as the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLAT) launched an insolvency resolution process following a plea filed by the Indian cricket board.

The Board of Control of Cricket in India had filed under section 9 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) 2016 which permits creditors to take control of the company from the current management. NCLT order in November 2023 said that Byju’s had defaulted on a payment of Rs 158 crore.

That said, Byju’s has been going through turmoil for the past couple of years. The firm already faced a funding crisis and saw an exodus at the top as well as board level in the past 12 months. In October 2023, the company’s chief financial officer Ajay Goel left whereas Arjun Mohoan, its chief executive for India, put in his papers in April this year. Rajnish Kumar and T V Mohandas Pai also left the company as advisors in July this year.

Last month, investment firm Prosus, which has invested around $500 million in Byju’s over the years, wrote off the value of its 9.6% stake in the company. This came soon after Byju’s raised a $200 million rights issue at a valuation of $225 million. This is a 99% discount to its peak valuation of $22 billion.

Not only Byju’s, its founder Raveendran’s net worth also went down to zero, according to Forbes Billionaire Index 2024.