Byjus Case Study

Case styud on byjus : Byju's (stylised as BYJU'S) is an
Indian multinational educational technology company, headquartered

in Bangalore, Karnataka, India as founded in 2011 by Byju Raveendran and Divya
Gokulnath. As of June 2023, Byju's was valued at $5.1 billion. As of April 2023, the
company claims to have over 150 million registered students. Byju's app was developed by
Think and Learn Pvt. Ltd, a company which was established by Byju Raveendran, Divya
Gokulnath and a group of students in 2011
Products and services : Academic subjects and concepts are explained with 12–20
minute digital animation videos and through which students learn in a self-paced mode.
Byju's reports to have 40 million users overall, 3 million annual paid subscribers and an
annual retention rate of about 85 In October 2018, the app expanded to the United Kingdom,
United States and other English-speaking countries.
In 2019, the company announced that it would launch its app in regional Indian languages. It
also planned to launch an international version of the app for English-speaking students in
other countries. And to cater students of kindergarten, Byju's launched new programs
in its Early Learn App.
In April 2021, the company also announced the launch of "Byju's Future School" to be led
by WhiteHat Jr Founder Karan Bajaj The Future School aims to cross the bridge from
passive to active learning with an interactive learning platform blended with coding and other
subjects like Math, Science, English, Music and Fine arts through storytelling. Byju's will
launch the Future School in the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Brazil, Indonesia
and Mexico in May Karan Bajaj quit Whithat Jr a year after the acquisition. The company
is focusing on adopting a hybrid model of teaching and learning by launching 500 tuition
centers across 200 cities in India. As of February 2022, 80 centers are already launched.
Acquisition : Singapore-based edtech company Great Learning has been acquired by

Byju's for $600 million. Byju's plans to invest an additional $400 million to strengthen its
position in the professional and higher education segment. Great Learning, founded in 2013,
will operate independently within the Byju's group under the leadership of its founder and
CEO Mohan Lakhamraju and co-founders Hari Nair and Arjun Nair. The company has
delivered over 60 million hours of learning to 1.5 million learners from 170 countries.
In April this year, Byju’s announced the acquisition of Aakash Educational Services Ltd
(AESL) for close to $1 billion. AESL had raised money from Blackstone in 2019, valuing the
company at nearly $500 million.
With over 33 years of operational experience, AESL is a prominent player in the test
preparatory industry in India. They specialize in medical and engineering entrance exams, as
well as scholarship exams/olympiads for students in classes 9 and 10.
Bengaluru-headquartered BYJU's has offices in 21 countries and its products are

present in over 120 countries. (File)
Edtech major Byju’s has been on a purchasing spree in 2021. The Bengaluru-based firm,
which is India’s one of the most valuable unicorn startups with a valuation of $16.5 billion,
on Monday acquired Singapore-headquartered Great Learning for $600 million.
The company stated it will invest another $400 million to accelerate Great Learning’s growth
and strengthen its position in the professional and higher education segment. The move
comes just days after Byju’s had announced the acquisition of US-based digital reading
platform Epic for $500 million.
Byju’s is backed by a string of marquee investors including General Atlantic, the Chan-
Zuckerberg Initiative, Naspers, Silver Lake and Tiger Global. It secured over $1 billion from
investors in 2020 and earlier this year, it raised close to $1.5 billion from a clutch of investors
including Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin’s B Capital Group, UBS Group and
Blackstone in tranches.
Here’s a look at Byju’s major purchases in the recent past:
Great Learning ($600 million)
Singapore-headquartered Great Learning was acquired by Byju’s for $600 million on
Monday and the edtech major will invest an additional $400 million to strengthen its position
in the professional and higher education segment. Great Learning will continue to operate as
an independent unit in Byju’s group under the leadership of its founder and CEO Mohan
Lakhamraju and co-founders Hari Nair and Arjun Nair.
“With this substantial investment, Great Learning will accelerate its organic and inorganic
growth in India and across global markets and expand its high-quality, transformational
offerings to learners everywhere,” a company statement said.
Founded in 2013, Great learning, a boot-strapped company, has delivered over 60 million
hours of learning to 1.5 million learners from over 170 countries. It leverages a curated
network of over 2,800 industry expert mentors and has collaborated with universities
globally, including Stanford University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT),
McCombs School of Business – the University of Texas at Austin and others to offer degrees,
diplomas and certificate programs. Great Learning and its teams are based out of Singapore,
the US and India.
Toppr
Byju’s is expected to spend approximately $150 million for the acquisition of Toppr,
according to various media reports. The deal is yet to be confirmed by the company.
In February this year, Byju’s was in the advanced stages of talks to acquire its rival Toppr,
according to industry sources, indicating that the transaction could be around $150 million.
Byju’s latest acquisition target underlines its aggressive expansion at a time online learning
has been gaining currency due to the pandemic.
Epic ($500 million)
Last week, Byju’s acquired US-based kids digital reading platform Epic in a $500 million
deal. Epic caters to kids aged 12 and under and the aquisition will help broaden Byju’s
footprint in the US as the firm will get access to Epic’s rich global user base that is said to
have doubled over the last year and now comprises more than 2 million teachers and 50
million kids.
Epic CEO and co-founder Suren Markosian and other co-founder Kevin Donahue, will,
however remain in their roles. The US-based platform’s interactive reading model for kids is
in sync with the long term growth strategy of Byju’s that counts the K-12 segment as a focus
area.
Byju’s plans an additional $1 billion investment in the North American market.
Aakash Educational Services (~$1 billion)
In April this year, Byju’s had announced the acquisition of Aakash Educational Services
Ltd (AESL) for close to $1 billion. AESL had already ventured into an omnichannel model
cent stake valuing the company at nearly $500 million.
According to a company statement, Aakash continues to operate as a separate entity under
Byju’s group. The test preparation company runs more than 200 tutoring centres in the
country. EY was the exclusive financial advisor for Byju’s on this transaction while Phoenix
Advisers was the exclusive advisor for the AESL. when it raised money from Blackstone
back in 2019 by offloading a 37.5 per
With over 33 years of operational experience in the test preparatory industry, AESL has a lot
of students enrolled for medical and engineering entrance exams and several class 9th and
10th level scholarship exams/olympiads.
WhiteHat Jr ($300 million)
Last year in August, Byju’s had acquired WhiteHat Jr for $300 million, making it one of the
biggest deals in the edtech sector back then. The edtech unicorn was looking to provide
coding programmes for kids, an area of expertise for WhiteHat Jr. It had stated it was also
looking to make significant investments in WhiteHat Jr’s technology platform and product
innovation while expanding the teacher base to cater to demand from new markets.
Funding and financials : This case study focuses on Byju's, an Indian edtech company,
and its journey in the education industry. Byju's has received substantial funding from
various investors since its founding in 2013. It became a unicorn in 2018 and a decacorn in
2020, reaching valuations of $1 billion and $10.5 billion, respectively. The company operates
on a premium business model, offering paid subscriptions for its content.
Byju's has secured partnerships and sponsorships in the sports arena, including becoming the
title sponsor for the Indian national cricket team and the Kerala Blasters FC. The
company has also been an official sponsor of the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
Through several funding rounds, Byju's raised significant amounts, with notable investments
from BlackRock, T. Rowe Price, B Capital, Baron Funds, and XN, among others. However,
in 2022, Byju's faced challenges and had to downsize its team, letting go of approximately
4,000 employees.
Byju’s Revenue Model : Byju’s business incorporates a subscription-based model.

This generates recurring revenue as customers periodically pay a fee for exclusive access to
specific products or services.
However, it offers a 7-15 day free trial allowing users to explore its services and determine if
it can advance their education. Byju's subscription fee is about $10 and $100 per month and
annum, respectively. The platform’s in-person classroom program is another crucial revenue
spring.
Furthermore, Byju’s Osmo hardware products contribute significantly to its revenue growth.
Osmo has about 1.3 million paying users and 30 million registered students.
Byju’s is the biggest Indian EdTech platform and a contender in the global e-
learning industry. The platform has been expanding, buying businesses and
building innovative services to improve e-learning.
This is significant for growth. However, there are crucial factors for determining
Byju’s business model success. Let’s consider some of them, including:
 Market valuation ($18 billion)
 Byju's subscription renewal rate (86 percent)
 Number of users (40 million), number of annual paid subscribers (3
million)
Problems faced by byjus : Funding Crunch: Byju's faced a funding crunch in 2022, leading
to financial constraints and difficulties in sustaining its operations. This resulted in the company
having to lay off around 4,000 employees.
Road to Profitability: Achieving profitability has been a challenge for Byju's. While the company has
experienced substantial growth and investment, it has struggled to translate its revenue and user base
into consistent profitability.
Competitive Market: The test-prep and edtech industry in India is highly competitive, with numerous
players vying for leadership positions. Byju's faces intense competition from other established players
as well as emerging startups, requiring continuous innovation and differentiation to maintain its
market position.
Customer Acquisition and Retention: Acquiring and retaining customers in a competitive market can
be challenging. Byju's must continually attract and engage new users while ensuring customer
satisfaction and loyalty to prevent churn.
ROLES PLAYED BY PARTICIPANTS :
Imagine yourself as a ceo of byjus and note down what decision you would make to solve
the problems mentioned above in the case study.
Hints :
 You can check the financial statements of the company and find out the areas where
expenses can be reduce and cash flow could be made positive .
 If necessary you can also make necessary changes in the existing business model or
can come up with totally a new business model .
 You can also analayze the decisions took by the company and also you can imagine
yourself at that post and what decision you might have not made being at that post .

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Case styud on byjus : Byju's (stylised as BYJU'S) is an

Indian multinational educational technology company, headquartered

in its Early Learn App.

Acquisition : Singapore-based edtech company Great Learning has been acquired by

Bengaluru-headquartered BYJU's has offices in 21 countries and its products are

Byju’s Revenue Model : Byju’s business incorporates a subscription-based model.

ROLES PLAYED BY PARTICIPANTS :

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