Indian online education provider Byju’s is struggling to close a funding round of $800 million as a global technology rout weighs on valuations. Investors including Sumeru Ventures and little-known firm Oxshott haven’t transferred about $250 million of the targeted amount because of macroeconomic reasons.
The delayed funding is likely to trigger renewed concerns about India’s consumer technology industry, where public valuations on major players have tumbled in recent months. However, Founder Byju Raveendran has completed a funding of about $400 million into the startup as part of the round.
The completed fundraising would have valued the startup at $22 billion, and Raveendran’s investment was a rare instance of an Indian founder taking part in a venture capital round at a late-stage startup.
Byju’s, whose parent company is formally known as Think & Learn Pvt, is the largest startup that, over the past decade, has thrived on India’s growing mobile connections and investment from abroad.
See What’s Next in Tech With the Fast Forward Newsletter
Tweets From @varindiamag
Nothing to see here - yet
When they Tweet, their Tweets will show up here.
