Agarwal had joined Byju’s in February 2022 from Zee Entertainment Enterprises (ZEE.NS). Two other business heads – Himanshu Bajaj and Mukut Deepak – have also left, the company, once India’s most valuable startup, said.

“As BYJU’S continues to chart its path to profitability and sustainable growth, we have undertaken a restructuring of businesses and verticals including the consolidation of four verticals into two key verticals – K-10 and Exam Prep,” the spokesperson said.

Indian news website Moneycontrol reported news of the departures earlier in the day.

Byju’s has let go of thousands of employees this year as it grapples with multiple legal and financial woes. Challenges multiplied after investor Prosus NV (PRX.AS) said that the company’s management “regularly disregarded advice” despite repeated efforts by the Dutch-listed tech firm’s former director to improve governance.

Deloitte, which was slated to audit Byju’s until 2025, also quit due to “long-delayed” financial statements by the company, citing “significant impact” on its ability to perform audits according to necessary standards.

Reuters has reported that Byju’s will file 2022 audited earnings by September and 2023 results by December.

In early July it constituted an advisory council with investor Mohandas Pai and former State Bank of India chairman Rajnish Kumar to address corporate governance issues.

“Executive leadership at BYJU’S regularly disregarded advice and recommendations relating to strategic, operational, legal, and corporate governance matters,” Prosus said in a statement.

Prosus – which slashed its valuation of Byju’s to $5.1 billion from $22 billion last year – said the decision for its director, Russell Dreisenstock, to step down from Byju’s board last month was mainly because he was “unable to fulfil his fiduciary duty to serve the long-term interests of the company and its stakeholders.”

“We have updated our shareholders about definitive steps taken to improve corporate governance and financial reporting, Byju’s said in response to a Reuters request for comment on Prosus’s statement, one of the most scathing attacks on the startup by its top investor shareholder, with a 9.6% stake.

Mohandas Pai, one of India’s most prominent business figures who was an early investor in Byju’s, had also called for better governance in the firm before joining Byju’s advisory council earlier this month to address corporate governance issues.

Deloitte, which was slated to audit Byju’s until 2025, also quit due to “long-delayed” financial statements by the company, citing “significant impact” on its ability to perform the audit according to necessary standards.

Reuters has reported that Byju’s will file 2022 audited earnings by September and 2023 results by December.

The Indian startup has let go of thousands of employees this year while grappling with multiple legal and financial woes.

Byju’s, once India’s most valuable startup, counts investors such as General Atlantic and BlackRock among its backers, but has seen its auditor Deloitte and multiple investor board members resign in recent weeks.

Prosus’ statement also added that “over time, its (Byju’s) reporting and governance structures did not evolve sufficiently for a company of that scale.”

The successful execution of the loan amendment would “immediately” solve for the loan’s acceleration and end all open litigation and avoid further enforcement actions, the steering committee said in a statement.

The news comes a month after the embattled startup had filed a lawsuit against Redwood, an investment management firm that is part of this group of lenders, to challenge its acceleration of the term loan B facility and disqualify it for “predatory tactics”.

“We look forward to completing the loan amendment over the next two weeks and are committed to doing our part to deliver on our agreed upon timeline,” the steering committee said.

Separately, Byju’s has cut down on its office spaces in Bengaluru, two sources told Reuters on Monday, as it tries to cut costs and shore up liquidity after letting go of thousands of employees this year.

The move comes as the edtech company has already let go of thousands of employees this year, while grappling with multiple legal and financial woes.

The startup operates out of three offices in India’s IT hub of Bengaluru, of which one has been “practically vacated”, one source told Reuters. The downsizing to two floors from two towers has been underway for almost a month, the source added.

Another person with direct knowledge of the matter said that of the six floors at its main corporate office, only three are operational, with the downsizing happening over the last six to eight months.

Both sources requested anonymity since they are not authorised to speak to the media.

Byju’s has over 3 million square feet of rented office spaces across the country.

News website, Moneycontrol, had earlier reported that the company has given up two out of its nine floors at a third location.

“Expansion and reduction in office space is based on changes in working policies and business priorities, which is very regular and is aimed at boosting operational efficiencies,” a Byju’s spokesperson told Reuters in an emailed response.

(Reuters) – All three global investors at Byju’s confirmed on Friday that their representatives had resigned from the board of the once high-flying Indian startup that has been battling pressure from lenders amid a steep drop in its valuation.

The resignations of GV Ravishankar of Peak XV Partners, earlier Sequoia Capital India, Russell Dreisenstock of Prosus, and Chan Zuckerberg Initiative’s Vivian Wu mean Byju’s board now only comprises the founder’s family.

Byju’s was valued at $22 billion in 2022, but investors have in recent months cut their valuation estimates as the edtech grapples with lawsuits, auditing issues and layoffs. Blackrock slashed its internal valuation of the company by more than 60% to $8.2 billion, disclosures show.

In a statement to Reuters on Friday, Byju’s said it is in discussions with investors about reshaping the board, including the addition of independent directors.

A “few” investors had to vacate their board seats as their shareholding dropped below the required minimum threshold, necessitating a board reshuffle, it said.

“We want to reassure all stakeholders that we are actively working towards constituting a diverse … board commensurate with the company’s size and scale,” a Byju’s spokesperson told Reuters.

The confirmation of the resignations comes after Reuters and other media outlets reported on Thursday that three Byju’s board members had quit recently.

Later that day, Deloitte disclosed it was resigning as the company’s auditor because Byju’s had delayed financial statements for 2021-22 and not provided documents, even after sending several letters to its board.

On Friday, sources told Reuters that the edtech was asking its three global investors to reconsider their decision to quit its board.

Peak XV Partners in a statement to Reuters said, “we are committed to supporting the company for bringing on board an independent director in order to strengthen business processes and internal control mechanisms”.

Deloitte, which was slated to audit Byju’s until 2025, has stepped down with “immediate effect” mid term, due to “long delayed” financial statements by the company, according to the auditing firm’s resignation letter to the company, seen by Reuters.

Byju’s said in a statement it has appointed BDO as its new auditor, adding that this will help it “uphold the highest standards of financial scrutiny and accountability.”

Deloitte, one of the world’s largest auditing firms, said there was a “significant impact” on its ability to perform the audit according to necessary standards and that it has “not received any communication on the resolution of the audit report modifications” for 2020-21.

Meanwhile, three board members of Byju’s – Peak XV Partners’s (earlier Sequoia Capital India) GV Ravishankar, Prosus’ Russell Dreisenstock and Chan Zuckerberg Initiative’s Vivian Wu have resigned from the board, three sources familiar with the matter said.

A Byju’s spokesperson called the news of the resignations “entirely speculative”. The company firmly denies these claims, the spokesperson said, adding significant developments or changes within the organization are shared through official channels.

Ravishankar and Wu did not immediately respond to calls and messages and Dreisenstock was not reachable.

The departures mean Byju’s board now only comprises of the founder’s family – Chief Executive Byju Raveendran, his wife Divya Gokulnath, and brother Riju Raveendran, the sources said.

Byju’s was valued at $22 billion last year, but saw its valuation slashed to $8.4 billion earlier this year by Blackrock, a minor shareholder in the company.

Byju’s is also locked in a dispute with lenders, who allege the company hid $500 million, leading it to sue lender Redwood Management.

The edtech firm skipped a $40 million repayment due earlier this month.