ED conducts searches against BYJU’s CEO
A total of three premises, two business and one residential, including that of the registered company Think & Learn Pvt Ltd were raided under the provisions of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), it said.
A spokesperson for BJYU’s legal team said the ED action was a “routine inquiry” and the company has been “completely transparent with the authorities and have provided them with all the information they have requested.”
The ED alleged the company (Think & Learn Pvt Ltd) has not prepared its financial statements since 2020-21 fiscal and has not got the accounts audited, which is mandatory. Hence, the genuineness of the figures provided by the company are being cross-examined from the banks, it said.
It said the action was taken on the basis of “various complaints” received by private people and alleged Raveendran Byju was issued “several” summons but he remained “evasive and never appeared” before the ED.
“The company also remitted about Rs 9,754 crore to various foreign jurisdictions during the same period in the name of overseas direct investment,” the agency said. “The company has booked around Rs 944 crore in the name of advertisement and marketing expenses including the amount remitted to foreign jurisdiction.”
The company said it wants to “emphasise that it is business as usual at BYJU’S”.
The Bengaluru-based company, co-founded by Raveendran Byju and his wife Divya Gokulnath, provides early learning, middle school education and test preparation. It was valued at USD 22 billion in a funding round in March 2022.
Byju’s showed a loss of Rs 4,588 crore for 2020-21 19 times more than that of Rs 231.69 crore in 2019-20. Revenues during the financial year 2020-21 dropped to Rs 2,428 crore from Rs 2,511 crore in FY20.
The company is yet to release a financial performance report for FY22.
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