New Delhi: BYJU’S, the erstwhile decabillion-dollar unicorn edtech, has hit a new low with its valuation being slashed to zero from $22 billion at its peak, by Financial giant HSBC. The group gave the zero valuation to Dutch investment company Prosus’ stake in BYJU’S, it said in a research note. Prosus’ stake was valued at $500 million, equalling 10 per cent at its peak.
Why did HSBC slash the valuation of BYJU’S?
The valuation of BYJU’S suffered this ignominy after HSBC took the legal cases and cash crunch that plagued the edtech. HSBC has been slashing Prosus’ stake in BYJU’S from time to time. The stake was early valued at an 80 per cent discount, said HSBC.
Prosus said in a statement that BYJU’S was beset with multiple headwinds. However, the investment company was working with the edtech to resolve its problems. HSBC clarified that the value of Prosus’ stake in other startups was also below their erstwhile valuations. These include:
Meesho
Pharmeasy
ElasticRun
Stack Overflow
BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager by assets under management, also slashed the value of its stake to zero from $22 billion in its March quarter result exchange filing. In the last funding round in October 2023, BlackRock had slashed the valuation to $1 billion from $22 billion.
BYJU’S beset by lawsuits
The edtech’s US unit BYJU’S Alpha failed to repay its loan of $1.2 billion secured in 2021, prompting lenders to move the US Bankruptcy Court in Delaware, US. The court asked BYJU’S board member Riju Ravindran, the brother of BYJU’S founder Byju Raveendran to share updates on the status of $533 million out of the $1.2 billion loan which remained unaccountable to date.
Byju Raveendran saw his personal net worth decline in the aftermath of the multiple lawsuits and financial issues that have plagued BYJU’S. According to the 2024 Forbes Billionaire’s List, Byju’s net worth nosedived to zero.
Edtech major BYJU’S saw it valuation being slashed to zero from $22 billion by HSBC which gave its views on the investment of Dutch investor Prosus. Biz News Business News – Personal Finance News, Share Market News, BSE/NSE News, Stock Exchange News Today
