Less than a week after a Delaware bankruptcy court ordered Byju Raveendran to pay more than $1.07 billion in a default judgment, the BYJU’S founder said he will submit new evidence in US courts to counter allegations that $533 million was diverted from Byju’s Alpha, the company’s US financing entity.
The November 20 ruling — issued by Judge Brendan Shannon after Raveendran repeatedly failed to appear or provide documents — held him personally liable for the alleged diversion of Alpha funds and a separate $540.6-million transfer involving a US hedge fund, Moneycontrol reported earlier. The judgment was issued as a sanction for non-compliance and not after a trial on merits.
In a statement on Thursday, BYJU’S said the new documents will be filed as part of its appeal against the Delaware order.
What is BYJU’S alleging against GLAS Trust and the RP?
According to the company, the new evidence shows GLAS Trust — the lender-appointed security agent — and the court-appointed Resolution Professional (RP) “repeatedly misled” US and Indian courts about the movement of the Alpha funds.
BYJU’S says the documents include bank statements, emails, intermediary transfer trails and documentary admissions obtained by GLAS in US proceedings, and that these show the $533 million was routed from Byju’s Alpha through intermediary entities into Think & Learn Pvt Ltd (TLPL) — not to any founder. The company claims GLAS and the RP “had full visibility” into these transfers.
Addressing these allegations, Raveendran said: “The funds were used for the benefit of Think & Learn and our impressive expansion. It is simply outrageous that I have been attacked in this manner and more importantly that BYJU’s customers and employees have been impacted by this attack based on pure greed of these Lenders and GLAS Trust. These parties will now be brought before the Courts and be required to answer some very tough questions.”
Why has Raveendran filed an additional motion in Delaware?
The release states that Raveendran has filed a separate motion arguing that the damages ruling was “premature” and issued without debate on valuation. BYJU’S claims GLAS withdrew its damages-determination request ahead of the September hearing, but the court “inadvertently” included a damages figure in the sanctions order.
The company says the court did not determine liability on the merits because Raveendran did not present a defence.
Will the same evidence be submitted in India?
BYJU’S said it will provide the same set of evidence to Indian courts in the coming weeks. It reiterated that public financial records show more than $475 million was invested into Think & Learn in the same period, and that the RP’s claims in India against suspended directors are “unfounded”.
What legal action are the founders planning next?
According to the statement, the founders’ legal advisers intend to file defamation and damages claims valued at more than $2.5 billion within 30 days. The proposed defendants include GLAS Trust, the Resolution Professional, and other individuals and entities described in the release as part of a “coordinated conspiracy”.
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