BENGALURU (Reuters) – Indian edtech startup Byju's on Monday announced a share rights issue to clear “immediate debt” and cover other operating costs as the cash-strapped company seeks to stabilize its business. announced that it would raise $200 million through
Bijouzu, which is backed by investors including General Atlantic, Prosus and Silver Lake, has not disclosed whether it has approached shareholders, how much money it will receive or by when it aims to close on the funding.
The company has suffered a series of setbacks, with a group of lenders recently initiating bankruptcy proceedings against the company. It has also negotiated the repayment of a $1.2 billion term loan in the past few months.
Bloomberg News reported last week that Byju's is looking to raise more than $100 million from existing shareholders to pay vendors, an amount that is up from its previous funding round in 2022, which valued it at $22 billion. This is a significant discount of 90% compared to the US dollar.
Earlier this month, BlackRock cut Biju's valuation by 95% to $1 billion, and tech investor Prosus NV cut its valuation to less than $3 billion last November.
The education company was also served a notice in November by India's Financial Crimes Authority to pay a fine for alleged violations of the country's foreign exchange laws.
(Reporting by Kashish Tandon in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D'Souza)
