Byju’s in talks to raise up to $1.5 bn; to be valued at $21 bn

Edtech giant Byju’s is in talks with several investors to raise $1-1.5 billion at a valuation of nearly $21 billion. It is India’s most valuable startup. The new valuation is a 27 per cent jump from the $16.5 billion valuation that it had achieved after the funding round in June that saw investments from UBS Group, Blackstone, Abu Dhabi's ADQ, Zoom founder Eric Yuan's family office and Phoenix Rising - Beacon Holdings.

The fundraising is expected to be closed within a month, said people aware of the developments as mentioned in a report in Hindustan Times. The spurt in the edtech giant’s valuation comes from the online learning boom amid pandemic lockdowns.

Not only has Byju Raveendran’s edtech company garnered generous fundings from investors, it has also gone on an acquisition spree. It acquired  Aakash Educational Services for $1 billion, Great Learning for $600 million, Epic for $500 million, Whodat for an undisclosed amount within months.

One of the people in the know told the daily that at least four new large funds are coming in and a few existing investors too are likely to increase their stake in the company. The company is also formulating its IPO plans, something that has excited investors, they said. Byju’s is yet to comment officially.

Raveendran had hinted at Byju’s initial public offering at an interview in April, when he said that the company will go for IPO in 18-24 months.

While the company had been doing well earlier too, the past two years have boosted its growth pace. It added around 25 million users during this period.

Also read: Byju's acquires AR startup Whodat

Also read: Byju's raises $350 million, becomes most-valued Indian startup