Byju’s, once India’s highest-valued startup, is now facing an insolvency resolution process at the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) following a plea filed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).
The BCCI filed under section 9 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) 2016, which allows creditors to take control of a company from its current management. In November 2023, the NCLT stated that Byju’s had defaulted on a payment of Rs 158 crore.
NCLT has appointed Pankaj Srivastava as the interim resolution professional, who will manage Byju’s until the lenders form a Committee of Creditors.
The NCLT order asserts that there are no grounds to deny the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) initiated by the BCCI against Byju’s, as the Bengaluru-based edtech firm’s defaults have been established.
Byju’s has been experiencing significant turmoil over the past couple of years. The company has faced a funding crisis and seen an exodus of top-level executives and board members over the past 12 months. In October 2023, the company’s chief financial officer, Ajay Goel, resigned, while Arjun Mohan, its chief executive for India, stepped down in April this year. Advisors Rajnish Kumar and T.V. Mohandas Pai also left the company 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 occurred shortly after Byju’s raised $200 million through a rights issue, valuing the company at $225 million—99% lower than its peak valuation of $22 billion.
Additionally, Byju’s founder Raveendran’s net worth has plummeted to zero, according to the Forbes Billionaire Index 2024.