New Delhi: Byju Raveendran, the founder of troubled edtech giant Byju's, said that he did not run away from India to avoid the ongoing insolvency crisis.
Raveendran refuted rumours about his stay in Dubai in his first virtual press conference in four years, saying that ‘I came to Dubai for a year for my father's treatment, which led to our ongoing stay’.
Addressing his company’s crisis, Raveendran spoke about his plans to turn around Byju’s, adding that ‘I’m not worried about what order will come. Whatever comes, I’ll find a way out.’
Byju’s saw its fortunes plummeting from $22 billion valued in 2022 to the point of getting embroiled in serious financial struggles with over $1 billion in unpaid loans.
It is reported that the company is facing insolvency proceedings in both India and the United States.
After the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) accused Byju’s of defaulting on a Rs 158.9 crore payment linked to a sponsorship deal, insolvency proceedings were initiated against it in 2024.
Subsequently, US-based creditor Glas Trust objected to the settlement between Byju’s and BCCI alleging misappropriation of funds.
While admitting that the company is in a crisis, Raveendran said that there is heavy burden of debt, which requires the company to ‘take decisive action to regain trust’.
In an attempt to reassure stakeholders, he said there is no fraud and ‘We have not done any intentional mistake’, adding that he would not have put all his family’s money in it, if there was any fraud.
He expressed confidence about regaining investor confidence, and said that his company nevertheless in financial troubles continued to attract users.
He claimed that Byju’s has more users than any other educational platform,which he termed huge responsibility, and said that ‘So there is no way we are running away.’
The company he said at its peak was doing Rs 400 crore per month but ‘right now, obviously, nothing is right’, he added.