Education technology firm Byju’s has filed an appeal with the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) against an order that initiated insolvency proceedings for the company, once valued at $22 billion, as per a Moneycontrol reports.
Livemint could not independently verify this news development.
The NCLAT is set to hear Byju’s appeal on July 22, though the company has requested an expedited hearing, as per the report.
“The company remains solvent with thousands of employees. I am prepared to commit to depositing the entire ₹158 crore in one instalment within one month,” senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, representing Byju’s, told the tribunal, as quoted by Moneycontrol.
This move comes after the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) admitted Byju’s parent company, Think and Learn, into the insolvency resolution process on July 16. The action was prompted by a plea from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) over the non-payment of ₹158 crore, as per Moneycontrol.
Despite the company’s logo being featured on the Indian men’s cricket team jerseys, Byju’s failed to pay the sponsorship dues to the BCCI, as per Moneycontrol.
As a result of the NCLT’s order, Byju’s founder, Byju Raveendran, has lost immediate control of the company. The tribunal appointed a bankruptcy professional to oversee daily operations during the proceedings. Pankaj Srivastava has been named as the interim resolution professional (IRP) to manage the company.
“The Interim Resolution Professional shall after collation of all the claims received against Think and Learn Pvt Ltd, the Corporate Debtor, and the determination of the financial position of the Corporate Debtor, constitute a Committee of Creditors,” the order stated, as quoted by Moneycontrol.
Additionally, the NCLT dismissed Byju’s request to refer the dispute to arbitration and ruled that no assets of Byju’s can be transferred while the company is under insolvency. The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) prohibits initiating or pursuing any suits against Byju’s during this period.
Once celebrated as the world’s largest education technology company and a shining example of India’s startup success, Byju’s has now become a cautionary tale of financial mismanagement. The company’s value has dramatically decreased from $22 billion to less than $1 billion, with creditors filing lawsuits to recover debts, coaching centers closing due to unpaid rent, and thousands of employees left without salaries.