Amid Byju’s escalating tensions with its creditors, the company is looking to cut at least 1,000 more jobs six months after a massive round of layoffs, the Economic Times and The Morning Context (articles under paywall) reported. The edtech major’s latest move to bring down expenses and streamline operations will reportedly impact employees in the sales and marketing teams the most.
Managers have been directed to sack two employees each from sales and marketing teams of its 280 tuition centres in India. Nearly 150 marketing managers may also be handed the pink slip. The report added that two months of salary will be given out as severance pay amidst a severe cash crunch, while many senior managers and assistant general managers have already left the firm headquartered in Bengaluru.
The news comes amid Byju’s suing the lenders, led by American investment management firm Redwood, of its $1.2 billion term loan B, which it raised in November 2021. After refusing to pay $40 million in interest due Monday, the company said that it will not be making any further payments until the case is resolved.
The Byju Raveendran-led company’s efforts to restructure the loan after the digital education boom fizzled out post-Covid19, failed after the creditors accelerated the repayment.
The company rejected rumours of financial difficulties by stating, “Byju’s remains financially robust with significant cash reserves. It remains open to discussions with the TLB lenders.”
Byju’s had fired 2,500 staff last year followed by 1,500 employees this year. CEO Raveendran had earlier announced that no further layoffs will be undertaken.
Worth $22 billion in its last round of funding, US-based asset manager BlackRock reduced the startup’s valuation to $8.29 billion in May.
The Enforcement Directorate in April had also conducted searches at the premises of Raveendran for alleged violations of foreign funding laws.
