Byju’s makes a surprise $1.2 billion repayment proposal to lenders

By Anto Antony and Reshmi Basu

Indian edtech titan Byju’s has made a surprise repayment proposal to lenders, in which the firm has offered to pay back its entire $1.2 billion term loan in less than six months, according to people familiar with the situation. 

 

The company 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, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the talks are private. The lenders are reviewing the proposal and are seeking more details about how the repayment will be funded, the people said. 

Byju’s and its lenders have been mired in a conflict for almost a year, during which rounds of negotiations to revamp its loan agreement have failed. The company elected to miss an interest payment on its term loan, one of the largest by a startup globally, exacerbating a dispute that underpins its mounting distress. 

The company has sought a swift resolution and execution of an amendment, they 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.

A lenders’ representative declined to comment regarding the repayment proposal from the company. A spokesperson for Byju’s didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

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.

The loan is being quoted at 49.8 cents on the dollar, Bloomberg-compiled data show. A level below 70 is generally considered distressed.