In A Surprise Move, Byju's Offers To Repay Entire $1.2 billion Loan To Lenders In Six Months: Report

Byju’s is offering to repay $300 million of the distressed debt within three months if the amendment proposal is accepted and the remaining amount in the subsequent three months

Byju’s has sought a swift resolution and execution of an amendment.

Byju’s, the Indian edtech start-up, has made a surprise repayment proposal to lenders, in which the company has offered to pay back its entire $1.2 billion term loan in less than six months, citing sources privy to the development, news agency Bloomberg said on Monday. According to the sources, Byju’s is offering to repay $300 million of the distressed debt within three months if the amendment proposal is accepted and the remaining amount in the subsequent three months.

The sources said that the lenders are reviewing the proposal and are seeking more details about how the repayment will be funded. Byju’s and its lenders have been engaged in a conflict for almost a year. Several rounds of negotiations that took place between the company and lenders on revamping loan agreement have failed. The company elected to miss an interest payment on its term loan, one of the largest by a start-up globally, exacerbating a dispute that underpins its mounting distress.

Byju’s has sought a swift resolution and execution of an amendment, the sources said. It’s unclear whether the parties will reach an agreement, a critical step in a broader campaign to turn around the startup once deemed India’s most valuable at $22 billion.

The loan is being quoted at 49.8 cents on the dollar, Bloomberg-compiled data show. A level below 70 is generally considered distressed. A lenders’ representative declined to comment regarding the repayment proposal from the company. A spokesperson for Byju’s didn’t respond to Bloomberg request for comment.

Last month, Byju's Chief Business Officer Prathyusha Agarwal and two other senior executives quit the company. In August, Byju’s has allegedly asked 400 of its employees to put in their papers, according to a news report.

Byju Raveendran, the son of educators, launched his eponymous learning app in 2015. The firm, whose parent company is formally known as Think & Learn Pvt, raised the five-year loan in 2021 to bolster its growth outside India.