In a recent communication to employees on February 4, Byju Raveendran, the founder and CEO of the embattled edtech company Byju’s, announced that the company successfully disbursed all outstanding January salaries to its employees over the past two days.
“I know you were told that you will get your salaries by Monday. You did not have to wait even till Monday. I have been moving mountains for months to make payroll, and this time, the struggle was even bigger to ensure that you receive what you rightfully deserve,” said Raveendran, in the fresh letter.
Think and Learn Pvt Ltd, which operates under the brand name Byju’s, has monthly payroll expenses close to Rs 70 crore, a report by Moneycontrol said.
The most recent update follows a report from two days ago, indicating a delay in salary disbursement for January. This setback occurred despite the company’s prior assurance to employees that payments would be made on the first day of each month, amid an escalating liquidity crisis.
In a letter to employees that followed, the senior management confirmed the delay and said that it was due to an “artificially induced crisis by select investors.”
‘Investors Have No Voting Rights’
Byju’s also shared a separate statement with the media highlighting investors have no voting rights on the CEO or management change as per the shareholder’s agreement, a day after a group of its investors launched a campaign to oust its leadership.
At least six Byju’s investors have called for an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) to address issues at the edtech major and oust founders from having control over the firm.
“Think & Learn Pvt Ltd has noted with sorrow, statements from a select few investors calling for an EGM to replace founder and group CEO Byju Raveendran. Under these unfortunate circumstances, we would emphasise that the shareholder’s agreement does not give them the right to vote on CEO or management change,” the company said in a statement.
The investors led by Dutch investment firm Prosus in the EGM notice requested the resolution of the outstanding governance, financial mismanagement and compliance issues and the reconstitution of the Board of Directors.
“The resolutions being put forward for the EGM to consider include a request for the resolution of 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,” a recent notice to shareholders by the group of investors said.
On February 4, Raveendran restated this stance in the latest letter, emphasising that the battle is solely against a handful of vested interests attempting to undermine the company. These interests sought to obstruct the announced rights issue for existing shareholders, as revealed earlier in the week.
‘Emotional Account’
The chief of Byju’s also conveyed an emotional narrative detailing the challenges he has faced during a period when the company has faced scrutiny since the beginning of 2022. The issues include a liquidity crunch, accounting irregularities, examination by government bodies, accusations of mis-selling courses, and widespread layoffs, among other concerns.
“Two days ago, I saw my father, the most resilient person I know, breaking down after seeing the news. My father is my role model; I am a teacher because he once was; I am an entrepreneur because he always taught me to follow my dreams. That he, my rock-solid support, was moved to tears made me feel a sudden pain,” Raveendran said.
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