Several big shareholders of Think and Learn Pvt. Ltd., the parent company of ed-tech startup Byju's, have called an extraordinary general meeting to suggest changes to the firm's management and leadership.
Prosus Ventures, Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, Peak XV, General Atlantic, and other investors signed a notice on Thursday requesting the meeting and the resignation of Byju's founder Raveendran.
According to a person with knowledge of the development, "the notice was sent after the company failed to act on an EGM requisition notice sent first in July and then in December."
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A major shift in Byju’s Management
Among other things, the gathering has asked for a rebuilding of the board and a change in management.
"The resolutions being put forward for the EGM to consider include a request for the resolution of the outstanding governance, financial mismanagement, and compliance issues; the reconstitution of the Board of Directors, so that it is no longer controlled by the founders of T&L; and a change in leadership of the company," according to a statement released by the investor consortium.
After a spike in remote learning during the pandemic, Byju's valuation peaked in late 2021, but it has since declined. As students resumed in-person instruction amid the economy's recovery, the company found itself burdened with increasing responsibilities to vendors and staff.
Investors stated that attempts to communicate with the company's management to address persistent problems about corporate governance, mismanagement, and compliance had been made for several months before the EGM announcement.
For more than a year, the company has been dealing with several challenges, including a dispute with its $1.2 billion Term Loan B investors, who have filed a lawsuit asserting technical default. This default relates to the company's failure to provide its subsidiary Whitehat Jr. as a guarantor and to timely file financial data for the period ending March 31, 2022. On February 7, a hearing is planned at the National Company Law Tribunal's Bengaluru bench.
Image Source: Mint
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