Byju’s

Founded in 2011, the Indian EdTech startup Byju's prepares students studying in undergraduate and graduate courses, and the startup has also expanded its scope to schoolchildren.

History

2022: Layoffs in June and October for 2,500 employees each

Number of layoffs at tech companies in 2022

2021: Raising $350 million in investments, estimated at $16.5 billion

In mid-June 2021, the Indian Edtech startup Byju's raised $350 million in investments from UBS Group, Blackstone and the founder. Zoom Erika Yuan The estimate startup rose to $16.5 billion.

The new estimate allowed Byju's to surpass startup Paytm, which was last valued at $16 billion, and took a leading position in the Indian startup ecosystem. As of June 2021, Paytm is working on studying public markets and plans to raise up to $3 billion, as a result of which the startup's valuation could grow to $30 billion.

India's most expensive startup Byju's is worth $16.5 billion

The new tranche of investments for Byju's is part of a larger round that the startup began in early 2021, and expects to receive more than $1.5 billion in total. Byju's existing investors also include B Capital Group and hedge fund XN. At the end of 2020, the startup was valued at $11 billion, and in July 2019 - at $5.75 billion.

In part, Byju's plans to use the funds raised to acquire more companies. Byju's, which acquired the Indian company Aakash for almost $1 billion in early 2021, is exploring the purchase of online learning startup Toppr, and is also collaborating with the American company Epic.

As of the beginning of 2021, the startup Byju's, according to its own data, has more than 80 million users, 5.5 million of whom are paid subscribers. In the summer of 2021, Byju's reported a sharp surge in all types of users, both free and paid customers, due to the start of a nationwide lockdown in India at the end of March, which largely affected New Delhi. In May, the startup said traffic to its apps and site rose 150%.^[1]

Notes