BYJU'S to close $800M funding round by the end of August

Edtech decacorn BYJU'S is struggling to close the $800 million funding round it had announced in March this year "because of macro-economic reasons," the startup said, adding that it will close the round by August this year.

BYJU'S is yet to receive $250 million from Sumeru Ventures and Oxshott that were committed at the time of the fundraise announcement. 

Founder Byju Raveendran has completed his personal investment of $400 million, a spokesperson told YourStory.

“Of the other $400 million, about $150 million has come in. The remainder is expected from Sumeru and Oxshott by the end of August, and the delays are because of macro-economic reasons,” the spokesperson added. 

The edtech giant confirmed its valuation at $22 billion after this round of funding. 

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Last month, BYJU’S laid off approximately 600 employees in a cost-cutting measure. Edtech startups have seen massive layoffs in the last few months, with Unacademy and Vedantu together firing more than 2,500 employees. LIDO learning and FrontRow have also let go of employees recently.

This spate of layoffs indicates to the edtech sector losing its mojo from the pandemic high. With schools reopening, online-first edtech startups are now reinventing themselves by moving to a hybrid model. 

In February, BYJU'S said that it would invest $200 million into its hybrid tuition centres to open 500 centres across 190 cities. 

Meanwhile, macroeconomic factors such as central banks raising interest rates, global inflation, supply chain gaps, and the war in Europe are impacting the business ecosystem in India as well. In the last few months, the valuations of consumer technology companies including Paytm and Zomato have plummeted.