Indian edtech giant Byju’s raises $250 million, on track to raise another $700 million

Byju’s has raised $250 million and is poised to raise about $700 million more, two people familiar with the matter said, as the Indian edech giant builds its war chest ahead of the highly anticipated IPO of its subsidiary Aakash .

New York-based investment firm Davidson Kempner has invested $250 million in Byju’s through structured instruments, the people said, asking for anonymity because the information is not public. The company completes the rest of the capital of a sovereign fund, the people said.

The rest of the capital will come into the startup as part of a convertible bond that limits the valuation to a maximum of $22 billion.

A spokesman for Byju’s did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The major round of funding in Byju’s comes as India’s startup ecosystem is reeling from the funding crisis amid a weakening global economy. Valued at $22 billion, Byju’s is India’s most valuable startup.

Byju’s is in advanced discussions with bankers including Citi and Goldman Sachs to go ahead with the IPO of Aakash, a physical tutor chain it acquired for nearly $1 billion two years ago, businessroundups.org previously reported.

Byju’s has received approval from its board of directors to go ahead with the IPO of Aakash, which it acquired for nearly $1 billion last year, and is gearing up to file the paperwork.