Key Highlights
- Newsroom ReviewedByju Raveendran, the founder of India's fallen unicorn, BYJU's, has once again found himself in the thick of things, following a recent investment by one of his wholly-owned firms in Aakash Educational Services Ltd.'s recent Rs 250 crore fundraising efforts, reports Mint. Beeaar Investco Pte.
- Ltd, a Singapore-based firm wholly owned by Byju Raveendran, has subscribed to Rs 16 crore worth of rights in Aakash's issue.
- This move has raised many eyebrows, as it comes against the backdrop of Aakash’s board freezing a separate Rs 25 crore subscription from AESL's parent company, Think & Learn Pvt.
- Ltd.
- (TLPL), due to concerns over foreign exchange compliance. Nevertheless, it is Byju's investment that has cast a legal shadow over Aakash's fundraising plans. The biggest sticking point of the Beeaar Investco investment in Aakash's fundraise is that the firm is already in a legal battle with the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA). QIA's arm, Qatar Holdings, has alleged that Byju Raveendran transferred 17.89 million Aakash shares—previously pledged as collateral for a $150 million loan—to Beeaar in violation of their agreement. As a result of the violation, Qatar Holdings orchestrated a worldwide asset freeze against Byju Raveendran and his entities of up to $235 million.
