Byju’s, the world’s most valuable edtech startup, has cut its valuation ask to $250 million in a rights issue it launched Monday as the Indian firm works to address its working capital needs.
If Byju’s succeeds in raising $200 million, the post-money valuation of the startup will be in the range of $220 million to $250 million, a 99% drop from the $22 billion value that the startup had previously attained.
The rights issue comes as Byju’s looks to secure capital amid a severe funding crunch.
Byju’s was preparing to go public in early 2022 through a SPAC deal that would have valued the company at up to $40 billion.
The company began facing mounting pressure from investors to address issues that it had previously left unresolved.
Byju’s, once valued at $22 billion, is willing to cut its valuation to below $2 billion as it hunts for new funding, a person familiar with the matter told TechCrunch.
Byju’s willingness to cut the valuation is a stunning reversal of fortune for the startup, once the poster child of the Indian startup ecosystem.
Byju’s has been chasing for new funding for nearly a year.
The new funding deliberation follows BlackRock cutting the value of its holding in Byju’s, slashing the implied valuation of the Indian startup to about $1 billion, according to disclosures made by the asset manager.
Byju’s was preparing to go public in early 2022 through a SPAC deal that would have valued the company at up to $40 billion.
BlackRock has yet again cut the value of its holding in Byju’s, slashing the implied valuation of the Indian startup to $1 billion from $22 billion in early 2022, according to disclosures made by the asset manager.
At the end of October last year, BlackRock said it valued Byju’s shares at about $209.6 apiece, down from the peak of $4,660 in 2022.
This isn’t the first time BlackRock has cut the worth of its holding in Byju’s — and BlackRock isn’t the only investor that has severely downgraded how they value Byju’s, but the new adjustment is by far the most drastic.
Prosus, which owns about 9% in Byju’s, said late last year that it valued Byju’s at “sub $3 billion.” At $22 billion, Byju’s ranked as India’s most valuable startup.
The valuation markdown is a stunning reversal in fortune for Byju’s, once the poster child of the Indian startup ecosystem.
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