Moving mountains for months to make payroll, says Byju as his firm releases salary for Jan

PTI, Feb 5, 2024, 8:32 AM IST

Raveendran Byju (source: Wikimedia Commons)

New Delhi: Edtech major Think and Learn released January’s salary of the staff with company’s Founder and CEO Raveendran Byju reaching out to employees for their support during the firm’s challenging phase, a source said.

BYJU’s founders and family members had earlier pledged their house to pay the salary of the employees as the firm continues to face a liquidity crunch.

“I have been moving mountains for months to make payroll, and this time, the struggle was even bigger to ensure that you receive what you rightfully deserve. Everybody has made sacrifices, everybody has grappled with decisions they never desired to make, and everybody is a little bit weary in this battle, but nobody has chosen to give up,” Byju said in a letter to employees on Sunday.

BYJU’S has floated rights issue to raise USD 200 million at over 99 per cent lower valuation compared to its peak valuation of USD 22 billion in March 2022.

“Nothing matters to me more than your belief in my ability to deliver. I fight for you. You fight alongside me. This is the sacred relationship that has helped me weather every storm,” Byju said.

He said that his father broke down after seeing the news against the company.

“My father is my role model; I am a teacher because he once was; I am an entrepreneur because he always taught me to follow my dreams. That he, my rock-solid support, was moved to tears made me feel a sudden pain,” he said.

The company has cleared all dues of existing employees a day before the committed timeline.

On Friday, Byju had written to employees sharing that the company is less than a quarter away from achieving operational profitability.

“Yes, we still have old liabilities to settle and short-term growth to secure. The success of this rights issue will ensure that we adequately address these challenges,” he had said.