Mohandas Pai, Rajnish Kumar To Quit Byju's Advisory Board

Former Infosys CFO Mohandas Pai and former State Bank of India Chairperson Rajnish Kumar will not renew their contract as advisory board members at Byju's. Their tenure is set to end in June.

Last year, the edtech firm appointed the duo to its advisory council, following the departure of Deloitte as its auditor and the resignation of three prominent board members. However, Byju's and the two leaders have mutually decided not to renew the contractual agreement, ending on 30 June 2024.

Byju's faces multiple challenges and is implementing a new sales strategy focusing on counselling rather than traditional selling. Additionally, the company has reduced its product prices around the start of the academic year.

Moreover, Byju's India CEO Arjun Mohan has exited, with founder Raveendran taking a more hands-on approach in leading the daily operations. The company has also announced a reorganisation to streamline operations into three focused divisions.

The firm is dealing with a severe liquidity crunch and is in a tussle with prominent investors, including Prosus, General Atlantic, Chan Zuckerberg Initiative and Peak XV. These investors have sought to void a USD 200-million rights issue initiated in January. Byju's is also engaged in a legal dispute with some of its investors in the Karnataka High Court.