Byju’s business head resigns amid reorganization at the struggling startup

Prathyusha Agarwal, the Chief Business Officer of Byju, and two other top executives have quit as the struggling Indian ed-tech startup, restructures its business and operations, according to a company representative on Tuesday.

Agarwal joined Byju’s from Zee Entertainment Enterprises in February 2022. Himanshu Bajaj and Mukut Deepak, two additional business heads, have also left the company, which was previously India’s most valued startup.

“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.

The departures were first reported by the Indian news website Moneycontrol earlier in the day. Byju’s has laid off hundreds of workers this year as it deals with a slew of legal and financial issues.

The difficulties grew after investor Prosus NV stated that the company’s management “regularly disregarded advice” despite repeated efforts by the former director of the Dutch-listed software firm to improve governance.

Deloitte, which was scheduled to audit Byju’s until 2025, also resigned due to the company’s “long-delayed” financial results, noting a “significant impact” on its ability to undertake audits in accordance with acceptable standards. According to reports, Byju’s will announce 2022 audited earnings in September and 2023 results in December.