In a recent letter to employees on February 4, Byju Raveendran, the founder and CEO of the embattled edtech company Byju’s, announced that the company has successfully credited all pending January salaries to employees over the last two days.
Raveendran expressed his commitment to ensuring that employees receive their rightful compensation and mentioned the significant efforts made to address payroll challenges.
According to sources, the monthly payroll expenses for the company are close to Rs 70 crore. This development comes after reports emerged that the company had delayed January salaries due to a worsening liquidity crisis, despite previous assurances to disburse payments on the first day of every month.
In a subsequent letter, the senior management acknowledged the delay, attributing it to an "artificially induced crisis by select investors."
Byju's also released a statement emphasizing that its shareholder agreement does not grant investors the right to vote on CEO or management changes, following a campaign by a group of investors seeking leadership changes.
Reiterating these points in the latest letter, Raveendran framed the challenges as a fight against a few vested interests attempting to sabotage the company, particularly in relation to the impeded rights issue announced for existing shareholders. He highlighted the resilience of the team in the face of external pressures.
Raveendran concluded the letter with an emotional account of the personal struggles he has faced, noting the impact on his father, who serves as his role model, emphasizing the familial and emotional dimensions of the ongoing challenges faced by Byju’s.