New funding round values Byju’s at $10.5 bn

APART FROM DST, BYJU’S EYES ANOTHER $200 MN FUNDRAISE FROM EXISTING INVESTORS

BENGALURU: DST Global, the latestage venture capital fund backed by Israeli-russian billionaire Yuri Milner, is in advanced talks to invest around $400 million in online education platform Byju’s, said two people aware of the talks.

Byju’s has been in a fundraising mode since the start of 2020 and has already secured funding worth $500 million in its current round from investors including Us-based technology investor Bond, General Atlantic and Tiger Global. The edtech startup is being valued at $10.5 billion in the current funding round. Bengaluru-based Byju’s will look to raise an additional $200 million from existing investors apart from DST in the ongoing round, said one of the two people cited above, who is aware of the fundraising plans. A spokesperson for Byju’s declined to comment.

A deal could be signed as early as this weekend, according to Bloomberg, which first reported on DST Global’s investment plans. Hong Kong-based DST Global has been actively investing in Indian tech startups, including firms such as businessto-business supplier Udaan, fintech startup Khatabook, food delivery firm Swiggy and social commerce startup Meesho.

Byju’s is the second-most valued startup in India, overtaking hospitality unicorn Oyo, which was last valued at $10 billion. Paytm was valued at $16 billion in late 2019, when it raised $1 billion in a round led by T Rowe Price and existing investors Ant Financial and Softbank Vision Fund.

The edtech startup last raised around $100 million from Bond Capital, a global technology investment firm co-founded by Mary Meeker, and $200 million from Tiger Global in January, when it was valued at $8 billion.

Since its launch in 2011, Byju’s has raised over $1 billion from Naspers Ltd, Tencent Holdings Ltd, Verlinvest Group SA, Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, Sequoia Capital India, Lightspeed India Partners, and General Atlantic, among others.

Between January and June, edtech startups raised $795 million from venture capital firms, according to data from Venture Intelligence research.