TechCrunch stated a US-based investment company Davidson Kempner has contributed $250 million to edtech giant Byju's latest fundraising round. The new round is part of a $700 million fundraising effort that is valued at $22 billion on a flat basis. The New York-based investment company made a structured equity investment utilizing convertible notes, which gives investors the opportunity to lend to the business and the potential to convert the loan into stock in the future.
Earlier MoneyControl, even reported that Byjus is all set to secure a $1 Billion fresh deal, which would be a mix of equity and other structured instruments. One of the three Middle Eastern sovereign funds in advanced negotiations to lead the round will raise equity for about 70% of the funding.
As per YourStory, Byjus was in talks to raise a $700 million flat funding round in April. The existing investors were also invested in the same for which the due diligence was already done. Now the latest funding of $250 million by Davidson Kempner, will help Byju's pay a portion of the $1.2 billion term loan B (TLB) it had obtained in 2021, reports MoneyControl.
Financial Express stated that Byjus is also considering an $8 billion initial public offering (IPO) for its subsidiary Aakash Educational Services, which Byju's purchased in 2021 for $1 billion. Additionally, Byju has been on the Enforcement Directorate's (ED) radar due to alleged violations of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (Fema), which new financing coincides with. The inquiry was started, according to ED's announcement late last week, as a result of complaints made by numerous people. The CEO and creator of the firm, Raveendran Byju, was said to have ignored many summonses to appear throughout the inquiry.
Over $5 billion has been raised by Byjus so far. With major startups feeling the crunch of funding, this news has come as a relief for many!
- Charu Kapoor
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