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Edtech startup Byju’s has filed an FIR against those involved in a criminal conspiracy against the company, founder of the company Byju Raveendran said in a social media post today. The FIR has been filed against resolution professionals Pankaj Srivastava, Dinkar Venkatasubramanian of Ernst & Young LLP, Rahul Agarwal, executive director at Ernst & Young, Lokesh Gupta, partner, E&Y, and GLAS Trust, the administrative and collateral agent for a group of lenders.
In November 2021, GLAS Trust Company LLC, acting as the administrative and collateral agent for a group of lenders, provided a $1.2 billion term loan to Byju’s US-based subsidiary, Byju’s Alpha Inc., to support the company’s global growth plans.
GLAS Trust had alleged that a series of wire transfers were carried out in April and July 2022 by Byju’s Alpha Inc., at the behest of the Corporate Debtor, fraudulently transferring approximately $533 million to a hedge fund based in the United States.
Following a breach of certain loan covenants by Byju’s, GLAS Trust initiated insolvency proceedings against the edtech firm in India under Section 7 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code.
Initially, the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) constituted a Committee of Creditors (CoC) that included GLAS Trust and Aditya Birla Finance Ltd as key financial creditors. However, the resolution professional (RP) subsequently restructured the CoC and removed both entities. This decision was challenged, and in January 2025, the NCLT reinstated them, citing misconduct on the part of the RP and ordering disciplinary measures against him.
Meanwhile, Byju’s founders sought to settle a separate ?158 crore debt with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). GLAS Trust opposed the deal, arguing that the funds used belonged to the lenders it represented. In October 2024, the Supreme Court of India nullified the settlement, stating that it was not conducted in accordance with proper legal procedure and ordered that the funds be deposited with the CoC managing Byju’s insolvency.
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