Byju’s $533 million case: Court alleges routing to founder; Raveendran denies allegations

A new filing in the Delaware Bankruptcy Court has alleged that the missing $533 million from Byju’s Alpha, the US-based entity now under the control of the edtech firm’s Term Loan B (TLB) lenders, was effectively channelled back to founder Byju Raveendran and his associated companies through a series of opaque transactions.

The filing was submitted as Byju’s Alpha seeks court approval for a proposed settlement with OCI Limited, the UK-based procurement firm that received the bulk of the funds in dispute. As part of the agreement, OCI founder Oliver Chapman provided a sworn declaration “itemising down to the cent” how the money was handled after it was transferred from Byju’s Alpha.

According to the filing, the funds were not utilised for legitimate procurement activities such as purchasing tablets or advertising services for Think & Learn (T&L), the parent company of Byju’s. This contradicts earlier claims made by Raveendran in a 2024 declaration submitted to the court, where he stated the payments to OCI were for “legitimate commercial purposes.”

Chapman’s review allegedly revealed that in 2022, the $533 million was “clandestinely removed” and routed through several intermediaries before being transferred to Byju’s Global Pte Ltd, a Singapore-registered entity wholly owned by Raveendran. The filing describes this as evidence of “personal enrichment,” accusing the founder of siphoning corporate funds.

“The declaration shows that Raveendran’s plot was to siphon hundreds of millions of dollars of corporate assets for personal use,” the document states. It further alleges that former OCI representative Rupin Banker, alongside Raveendran and others, misused OCI to perpetrate fraud on Byju’s Alpha and its creditors.

In a statement J Michael McNutt, Senior Litigation Advisor, Lazareff Le Bars Eurl said, “Byju Raveendran disputes all allegations made in this Delaware Court submission. This submission to the Delaware Court does not address the fact that GLAS Trust has been aware that the monies from the Alpha loans were not used by Byju Raveendran or any Founder of BYJU’s for their personal gain but were used for the benefit of Think & Learn Private Limited (TLPL)".

The statement added that, "We reserve all rights to take actions against the UK firm and its director. GLAS Trust controls Think & Learn Private Limited and the Resolution Professional of TLPL should be confronted and held responsible to explain the use of these funds. Applications are pending before the Courts in India to require such disclosure and accountability by GLAS Trust and the Resolution Professional of TLPL."

It said that claims are being prepared against Glas Trust and others in other jurisdictions. "Such claims to be issued by all or some of BYJU’s Founders are expected to demand monetary damages of not less than $2.5 billion and absent a settlement are expected to be filed with the relevant Court prior to the end of 2025," McNutt, said.

The allegations represent the latest escalation in the long-running dispute between Byju’s and its international lenders. Once valued among the world’s most prominent edtech unicorns, Byju’s has been beset by financial and operational troubles triggered by its rapid expansion and mounting debt.

The company raised $1.2 billion through a Term Loan B facility in November 2021, funnelling the funds through Byju’s Alpha. The money was intended for global acquisitions and scaling efforts. However, by mid-2023, lenders claimed substantial breaches of the loan agreement and reported that around $500 million was unaccounted for.

In November 2023, the Delaware court ruled in favour of the lenders, granting them control of Byju’s Alpha. Meanwhile, the company's troubles deepened in India, where the BCCI filed an insolvency petition in June 2024 over unpaid sponsorship dues amounting to Rs 158 crore.

As insolvency proceedings continue in India, interest has started building around the fate of Think & Learn. According to Moneycontrol, UpGrad, led by Ronnie Screwvala, has placed a bid for the parent company, becoming the second known bidder after Ranjan Pai’s Manipal Education and Medical Group.

With legal battles unfolding on multiple fronts and allegations of financial misconduct mounting, Byju’s faces one of the most turbulent periods in its history, as courts in the US and India work through parallel insolvency and recovery processes.

With agency inputs