Byju Raveendran, founder of Byju’s, was sentenced to six months’ imprisonment by a Singapore court for contempt of court, as Raveendran reportedly violated multiple court orders. The court also directed
him to pay a fine of $70,500.
According to Bloomberg report, the Singapore court also ordered him to submit documents proving his legal ownership of Beeaar Investco Pte, a company that held shares in a related entity.
Byju Raveendra has been battling legal battles against overseas investors across multiple jurisdictions.
He is currently facing legal action in Singapore from a subsidiary of the Qatar Investment Authority, which had invested in the edtech company during a funding round held while the firm was cutting jobs and laying off employees.
Qatar Holdings was represented by law firm Drew & Napier, while Byju’s Investments was represented by Fervent Chambers.
$1 Billion Case In US Court
Last year, Raveendra had received a major setback after the US Delaware court ordered him to repay USD 1 billion to Byju’s Alpha and US-based GLAS Trust Company LLC. The court held Raveendran personally liable for the damage upon the petition filed by the lender.
The court also found that Raveendran lapsed to comply with the discovery order and continued to be evasive on several occasions. “The court will enter default judgment against Defendant Raveendran…in the amount of USD 533,000,000, and on Counts II, V and VI in the amount of USD 540,647,109.29,” the judgement said.
Raveendran: Riches To Rags
The founder of the ed-tech company, Byju Raveendran, was once seen as a poster boy of India’s startup success story. His net worth soared substantially to make him a billionaire. At the peak of 2019, Byju’s had achieved ‘Unicorn’ status with a valuation of over $1 billion. By 2022, the company’s valuation soared to $22 billion before plummeting to nil.
Introduced in 2015, the edtech platform focused on students from kindergarten to class 12th.
However, the company has long faced severe backlash from customers and parents over its predatory and irritating marketing and sales practices.
Byju Raveendran in an interview acknowledged that a significant mistake the company made was opting for a $1.2 billion term loan in 2021, despite having adequate equity funding options.
In an interview with ANI, Raveendran explained that the decision, made collectively with board members including investor and founder directors, was not a result of desperation, as the company had previously raised $5 billion.
He also mentioned, “These are business mistakes. Today, even though it came through an acquisition, the concept of WhiteHat Jr. could have significantly impacted by enabling Indian teachers to teach students worldwide. That was a huge opportunity lost.”
