“ED Issues ₹9,362 Crore Notice to Byju’s Founder and Parent Company Over FEMA Violations”
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has escalated its scrutiny of leading ed-tech giant Byju’s, issuing show cause notices totaling ₹9,362 crore to the company’s founder, Byju Raveendran, and its parent company, Think and Learn Pvt Ltd. The notices come in light of alleged violations under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), citing failures in document submission and compliance relating to foreign investments and transactions.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has escalated its scrutiny of leading ed-tech giant Byju’s, issuing show cause notices totaling ₹9,362 crore to the company’s founder, Byju Raveendran, and its parent company, Think and Learn Pvt Ltd. The notices come in light of alleged violations under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), citing failures in document submission and compliance relating to foreign investments and transactions.
According to an ED statement released on Tuesday, Think and Learn Private Limited and Byju Raveendran are accused of multiple breaches of FEMA provisions. These alleged violations include the failure to submit import documents against advance remittances made outside India, delays in filing documents concerning Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), and the inability to allot shares against FDI received into the company. Additionally, the company is accused of not realizing proceeds from exports made outside India and delayed filing of documents against remittances outside the country.
ED further revealed that statements from Byju Raveendran have been recorded during the investigation. The adjudicating authority under FEMA, 1999 has initiated action based on the complaints filed by ED, issuing show cause notices to both Think and Learn Private Limited and Byju Raveendran for contraventions amounting to ₹9,362.35 crore.
In response to the ED statement, Byju’s initially denied receiving any communication from the Enforcement Directorate. However, when pressed for comment following the ED’s disclosure, a spokesperson from Byju’s stated they have “no further comment” to offer at the moment.
This ongoing probe by ED follows various complaints related to foreign investments received by Byju’s and concerns over the company’s business conduct. Notably, earlier this year in April, ED conducted raids on three premises associated with Byju’s in connection with alleged FEMA violations. At that time, ED claimed that investigations revealed foreign direct investment of approximately ₹28,000 crore received by Byju’s between 2011 and 2023. Moreover, the agency alleged that the company remitted ₹9,754 crore to various foreign jurisdictions during the same period as overseas direct investment.
Byju’s, founded in 2011 as a test prep firm, experienced significant growth during the Covid-19 pandemic. However, the company faced a downturn in funding and reported substantial losses amounting to ₹4,589 crore in the fiscal year 2020-2021.
This latest development intensifies the legal scrutiny surrounding Byju’s, raising concerns about compliance with foreign exchange regulations and its impact on government revenue. As the investigation progresses, the implications for one of India’s prominent ed-tech companies remain uncertain, pending responses from both the company and regulatory authorities.
Sources By Agencies
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