Byju’s in talks to go public via SPAC route: Report

Edtech giant Byju’s is in advanced discussions to go public through one of Churchill Capital’s special-purpose acquisition companies (SPAC), an agency reported, citing sources.

Byju’s has held talks with several potential SPAC partners and was working out an agreement with Michael Klein’s Churchill Capital, it was reported, adding the start-up would raise a total of about $4 billion and seek a valuation of about $48 billion.

The negotiations are not final and Byju’s or Churchill could still opt out of such a deal, and Byju’s could consider an initial public offering in India next year, the report said, citing sources. Byju’s and Churchill Capital did not immediately respond to requests for comments. India has seen a boom in online education, a market which has only expanded as the pandemic forced schools to close and also targets thousands of aspirants who attempt the government-run joint entrance exam (JEE), eyeing coveted undergraduate engineering courses.

Bangalore-based BYJU’s was founded by Byju Raveendran, a former teacher, and is backed by US investment firm Tiger Global, Mark Zuckerberg’s Chan-Zuckerberg Initiative, Sequoia Capital India and BlackRock to name a few.