Byju Raveendran Regains Control Of Edtech Firm, NCLAT Enforces Certain Conditions

The tribunal said that if the founders failed to complete the payments on the particular dates mentioned in the undertaking, insolvency proceedings against the firm would be started again

Byju Raveendran has regained control of his edtech firm. The founder of Indian edtech start-up, Byju’s, is now back at the helm of the company after the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT) on Friday accepted the settlement between Raveendran and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). 

The decision has placed promoters including Raveendran at the helm of the company, reported Business Standard. At the same time, the settlement has certain conditions attached and the tribunal stated that Byju and Riju Raveendran would have to ensure these are not violated.

The tribunal stated that if the founders failed to complete the payments on the particular dates mentioned in the undertaking, insolvency proceedings against the edtech firm would be automatically started again.

The order from the tribunal including judicial member, Rakesh Kumar Jain, and technical member, Jatindranath Swain, read, “In view of the undertaking given and affidavit filed, the settlement is approved, the appeal succeeds, and the impugned order is set aside. However, with the caveat that in case there is a breach in the undertaking given, the insolvency order shall be revived.”

The ruling further revealed that both BCCI and Byju’s are reaching the settlement before the Committee of Creditors (CoC) is put in place, as the source of the funds for the deal is not in dispute. The tribunal shared that it didn’t have any reasoning to hold the firm in the insolvency process.

Reacting to the order, the firm’s founder and CEO, Byju Raveendran, said, “Today's NCLAT order is not just a legal victory, but a testament to the heroic efforts made by our Byju’s family in the last two years. Our founding team members have poured their hearts and souls, not to mention their entire savings, into this dream, often at great personal cost.”

Another board member, Riju Raveendran, revealed that the money paid to the BCCI is ‘clean’ as it has been paid from the sale of his shares in Think & Learn Pvt Ltd between 2015-22.