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  • Singapore Court Blocks WazirX Parent Zettai’s Restructuring Bid!

    Nearly a year after an alleged cyber robbery that resulted in the loss of $235 million in virtual digital assets, the Singapore High Court (HC) on 5 June dismissed the planned restructuring plan of WazirX’s parent company, dealing a serious blow to cryptocurrency traders on the exchange platform.

    The parent business Zettai’s plan of arrangement was revoked just weeks after Zensui Corporation, a subsidiary, was established in Panama. According to those acquainted with the case, the court’s decision was spurred by the company’s failure to disclose this incorporation data during the restructuring process.

    According to an affidavit filed with the Singapore court and examined by Business Standard, Zensui was formed on March 10 of this year. Furthermore, the business stated that Zettai has no plans to apply for a Singaporean digital token service provider (DTSP) licence.

    Additionally, it stated that neither the parent company nor its Panama subsidiary planned to submit an application to register with the Financial Intelligence Unit-India (FIU-IND).

    In a post on X, WazirX stated that the Singapore High Court had issued a ruling rejecting our suggested reorganisation plan. Although this result was not what the brand had hoped for, it respects the court’s ruling and is still totally committed to following all legal and regulatory procedures.

    WazirX May Appeal Against the Recent Order

    According to a recent report that cited comments from company management, the digital currency exchange may file an appeal against the most recent ruling made by the Singaporean court.

    Laws in Singapore mandate that DTSPs, who must obtain a licence there, suspend or stop conducting business outside the island nation by June 30.

    The delay in allocating available assets to creditors could be exacerbated by the company’s setback. According to Navodaya Singh Rajpurohit, founder of Pravadati Legal and legal partner at Coinque Consulting, Zettai also neglected to notify users or the court about the March 10 incorporation of its subsidiary Zensui and an agreement to transfer cryptocurrency assets to Zensui.

    In order to distribute cryptocurrencies legally in India, Zettai disclosed that it does not plan to register with FIU-IND, he continued. “The scheme was not viable and lacked transparency due to these omissions and regulatory non-compliances,” he stated.

    WazirX’s Explanation in Court

    The company stated in the affidavit that one of the reasons it did not intend to apply for the DTSP licence was because of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2022.

    The Act did not pose any practical or legal obstacles to Zettai carrying out the first distribution or permitting withdrawals in line with the scheme of arrangement.

    According to a media report, since the holding was with Singapore, the Panama subsidiary was in charge of the bitcoin linked to redistribution. It was a stopgap measure because, after June 30, the company hoped to relocate to a country where it could adhere to rules and regulations.

    Months after the firm requested restructuring in the Singapore High Court, Zettai reported in April that 93.1% of eligible voting creditors, or 94.6% of the total value of claims, voted in favour of the plan. Voters were 141,476 scheme creditors, representing approved claims totalling $195.65 million. 131,659 investors, or $184.99 million, of the whole creditor base supported the plan.

  • AI-Powered Travel Tech Startup The Tarzan Way Raises INR 2 Crore in Seed Round from Inflection Point Ventures

    • The Tarzan Way is an AI-powered travel tech startup enabling users to craft hyper-personalised and authentic holidays in seconds
    • The funds will be used across product development, operations, marketing, HR, and to launch their new “Exploration App”
    • So far, Inflection Point Ventures has invested over INR 800 Cr across 210+ startups.

    The Tarzan Way, an AI-powered travel tech platform redefining how the world travels, has raised INR 2 crore in a funding round led by Inflection Point Ventures. The funds will be utilised for product development (35%), operational streamlining (25%), marketing (20%), HR and admin (15%), and miscellaneous expenses (5%). The round also saw participation from Your Trips Limited (UK-based travel company), Prateek Maheshwari (Founder at PhysicsWallah) and other angel investors.

    Founded in 2020 by Shikhar Chadha and Shivank Tripathi, The Tarzan Way is an intelligent travel companion that enables users to design hyper-personalised, authentic holiday experiences across the globe in just a few clicks. The company is driven by the mission to simplify and elevate travel through technology.

    Both founders bring complementary skills and a shared passion for travel innovation. Shikhar and Shivank aim to break the clutter in the travel industry by combining deep tech with human-centric storytelling, enabling each trip to be memorable and meaningful.

    Ankur Mittal, Co- Founder, Inflection Point Ventures, said, “As more people venture out to explore the world, the demand for experiential travel — journeys that are immersive, personalized, and meaningful — is rapidly rising. Yet, most travellers still rely on traditional travel agencies that offer rigid plans, or they find themselves overwhelmed trying to plan it all on their own. Tarzan Way bridges this gap by using AI and technology to create smart, tailored travel experiences that act as a true companion throughout the journey, making every trip not just a getaway, but a story worth remembering.”

    The startup operates on a global scale and is fast emerging as a go-to platform for immersive travel experiences. The fresh funds will be deployed towards product development, operational efficiency, marketing, and team building, alongside the launch of its new “Exploration App.”

    What makes The Tarzan Way stand out is its hyper-personalised itineraries, AI-backed booking engine, 24×7 live concierge support, and one-click booking experience. Their platform integrates local flavours and authentic experiences with tech-powered efficiency.

    “Our passion lies in creating memories that last. We don’t just plan trips; we help people craft stories that stay with them forever. That’s the core spirit behind The Tarzan Way,” said Shikhar Chadha, Co-founder, The Tarzan Way.

    In terms of performance, the company has witnessed a 300% YoY revenue growth and 70% MoM user growth. With 35K+ social followers and over 10M content views, it has already clocked INR 13.5 Cr in gross value of bookings.

    The Indian travel & tourism sector contributed over $199B to the GDP in 2023 and is projected to touch $512B by 2028. The space is primed for disruption, especially with the rise of AI and experiential travel.

    About The Tarzan Way

    Founded in 2020 by Shikhar Chadha & Shivank Tripathi, The Tarzan Way is an AI-powered travel buddy that enables users to craft hyper-personalised & authentic holidays within seconds. With the vision of innovating & simplifying travel, the company’s core USP lies in the hyper-local personalisation with unique experiences & activities across the globe.

    About Inflection Point Ventures and Physis Capital

    Inflection Point Ventures (IPV) is an angel investing platform with over 23,500+ CXOs, HNIs, and Professionals to invest in startups. The firm supports new-age entrepreneurs by providing them with monetary & experiential capital and connecting them with a diverse group of investors. IPV has launched a $50 Mn CAT 2 VC fund, Physis Capital, to invest in Pre-Series A to Series B growth-stage start-ups. The fund has already deployed capital in two startups so far, with a few deals in advanced stages of the pipeline.

  • Amul Joins Hands with COVAP to Bring Iconic Indian Milk to Spain!

    According to various media reports, the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (Amul), which sells goods under the Amul brand, has partnered strategically with Spain’s Cooperativa Ganadera del Valle de los Pedroches (COVAP) to launch its signature milk product in both Spain and the EU.

    Before moving on to other Portuguese cities like Malaga, Valencia, Alicante, Seville, Córdoba, and Lisbon, the rollout will start in Madrid and Barcelona.

    Amul intends to enter additional European markets in the future, including Germany, Italy, and Switzerland. The Indian Embassy in Madrid hosted the formal launch event.

    According to Jayen Mehta, managing director of Amul, this partnership will guarantee that the goodness of Amul Milk will nourish and invigorate all of our Spanish customers. Amul fresh milk is being introduced in Europe for the first time.

    Amul’s Broader Vision of Global Expansion

    In line with the goal of India’s Honourable Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, to establish Amul as a worldwide dairy brand, Mehta emphasised India’s larger aim for international dairy expansion, saying it is a great pleasure to convey the taste of India to the globe.

    With almost 2,000 active farmer members, COVAP is a prominent Spanish cooperative that was established in Pozoblanco, Córdoba, in 1959. Over 400 million litres of milk are processed annually at its state-of-the-art dairy plant, which exports to over 30 nations, including the US, UK, and certain areas of Asia.

    In his remarks, COVAP President Ricardo Delgado Vizcaíno stated that the relationship with Amul enables COVAP to collaborate with another cooperative to assist them in expanding their brand in Spain, which benefits not only the dairy farmer members of the brand but also those in India.

    With 112 dairy factories spread throughout India, Amul, the largest farmer-owned dairy cooperative in the world with 3.6 million members, processes more than 12 billion litres of milk a year.

     With a revenue of over $11 billion, it is regarded by international rankings as the most powerful dairy brand in the world.

    Amul Hiking Milk Prices to Offer More Benefits to Milk Producers

    Amul increased the price of its fresh pouch milk nationwide by INR 2 per litre in April of this year. The cooperative underlined that the maximum retail price has increased by 3–4%, which is much less than the average rate of food inflation.

    Amul made it clear in its statement that it gives milk producers 80 paise for every rupee made from the sale of milk and milk products. According to the statement, the price adjustment will support our milk producers in maintaining fair milk pricing and incentivising them to increase their output.

    In the meantime, Mother Dairy raised prices by INR 2 per litre as well. According to the statement, Amul added 50 and 100 millilitres of extra milk to 1-litre and 2-litre cartons for over five months last year, further benefiting consumers.

    In addition, starting in January, all markets saw a one-litre pack price reduction of INR 1. Amul explained that since June 2024, the price of fresh pouch milk has not increased.

  • Capillary Technologies Secures Board Approval for INR 2250 Cr IPO Launch

    The board has given Capillary Technologies permission to raise INR 2,250 Cr, or about $263 million, through an initial public offering (IPO).

    In accordance with regulatory filings, the Warburg Pincus-backed business intends to raise INR 500 Cr through the issuing of new shares and will also have an offer for sale (OFS) component of INR 1,750 Cr, wherein some of its owners may dilute their shareholding.

    The plan to generate the aforementioned amounts through an initial public offering (IPO) was accepted by Capillary Technologies’ board on May 23. The choice must be approved by the company’s shareholders, though.

    In January, a media outlet revealed that Capillary Technologies intended to submit its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) to SEBI, the market watchdog, by June in order to raise $200 million through an initial public offering (IPO).

    The Bengaluru-based company was aiming for a listing valuation of $500 million to $1 billion at the time, according to sources. It was not possible to determine the precise date of its mainboard listing.

    According to the company’s most recent regulatory statement, it might also think about raising more money in a pre-IPO deal.

    Second Attempt to go Public

    Capillary has already tried to list in India. The SaaS business first submitted a DRHP for an INR 850 Cr IPO in 2021, but it later abandoned the plans as the markets became unstable.

    Although the company has not yet released its FY25 financial results, according to records obtained from Tofler, its operating revenue increased by 80% year over year to INR 600 Cr in FY24, while its net loss decreased by 33% year over year to INR 59 Cr.

    At a time when over 20 cutting-edge digital businesses are getting ready to go public in 2025 due to high investor demand, Capillary has brought back its IPO ambitions. Shiprocket, PhysicsWallah, Groww, and boAt are among them; throughout the last few months, they have all submitted confidential IPO documents to SEBI.

    In the upcoming six months, it is anticipated that companies such as Urban Company, BlueStone, Avanse Financial Services, Smartworks, IndiQube, and ArisInfra would also go public. In addition, companies like OfBusiness, Pine Labs, Razorpay, PhonePe, and Lenskart are stepping up their preparations for possible initial public offerings.

    Capillary Technologies Operations and Clientele

    Capillary Technologies, which was founded in 2008 by Aneesh Reddy, Ajay Modani, and Krishna Mehra, offers software for client engagement and loyalty. Among its customers are Domino’s, Indigo, Tata Group, and Aditya Birla Group.

    Reddy is still the company’s top boss, even though Modani and Mehra have already left. Capillary asserts that it is present in foreign markets like the US, MENA, and Southeast Asia in addition to India. It closed its Series D financing at $140 million last year.

    About $95 million of its funding was made up of secondary deals, which allowed new investors to join the cap table while also providing partial exits to current investors and former workers.

    Among the well-known firms supporting Capillary are Qualcomm Ventures, American Express Ventures, Norwest Venture Partners, Avataar Ventures, Filter Capital, InnoVen Capital, and Peak XV Partners.

  • Volkswagen Layoffs Gain Speed: 20,000 Exit Early as 35,000 Job Cuts Proceed

    In light of the continued Trump tariffs that are threatening the German auto sector, international automaker Volkswagen has announced plans to reduce its workforce by 35,000 employees by 2030 as part of its cost-cutting programme, according to a media report.

    Citing a works council meeting at Volkswagen’s Wolfsburg headquarters, a news portal reported that over 20,000 employees at the heart of the Volkswagen brand had decided to take voluntary retirement and terminate their contracts early.

    It is anticipated that the majority of the job cutbacks would occur at the automaker’s German operations, and the business hopes to implement the reductions in a way that is “acceptable” to those impacted.

    Volkswagen’s Offerings to Exiting Employees

    Depending on their duration of service, the German manufacturer intends to provide severance payments to each employee impacted by the cost-cutting strategy.

    According to a report, which cited the company’s personnel meeting on June 5, the company is expected to pay up to $400,000, but it did not disclose the exact amount of severance payments.

    In addition to laying off employees, the corporation plans to limit the number of apprenticeships it offers each year from 1,400 to 600 beginning in 2026.

    According to the news article, the German manufacturer would probably save around 1.5 billion euros annually in labour costs as a result of these cost reductions and the widespread layoffs.

    Nearly 130,000, or 13 lakh, workers in Volkswagen’s core team are agreeing to a remuneration freeze in addition to their voluntary resignation. The corporation wants to increase salaries by 5%, which will be paid into a fund in two stages.

    This money will be needed to finance flexible work schedules, among other things. The news broadcast also explained how these actions kept the German Volkswagen factory from closing.

    Trump Tariff Woes Haunting the German Automaker

    Following a report of a decline in the business climate index against the backdrop of the Trump tariffs from the United States, an international news agency previously reported that the German automotive sector further weakened in May 2025.

    The European market’s low demand and fierce competition from international brands are already problems for the manufacturers. As a result, Volkswagen, BMW, and Mercedes-Benz began negotiating a settlement with the US government to lessen the effects of tariffs.

    According to a media report, the business climate index fell to -31.8 points from -30.7 points in April, while company expectations for May 2025 fell to -28.3 from -25.2 points in April.

  • Hyundai & Kia Offload INR 690 Cr Stake in Ola Electric in Major Bulk Deal

    Kia, another South Korean automaker, has decreased its ownership in the EV company, while Hyundai Motor has sold off all of its shares in Ola Electric. According to a news agency, the total share sale brought in about INR 6.89 billion ($80 million).

    Hyundai, which had previously owned 2.47% of the company, sold its shares at INR 50.70 a share, according to exchange records made public on June 5.

    At INR 50.55 per share, Kia sold off 0.6% of its ownership. Kia initially owned less than 1% of the company, and as exchange data does not show stakes below 1%, its present ownership is unknown. Ola Electric’s share price dropped 8% on 5 June as a result of the disposals.

    The stock fell as a result of both sales being priced at a discount of almost 6% to the closing price on 4 June. With intentions to work together on the development of electric vehicles and charging infrastructure with Bhavish Aggarwal’s business, Hyundai and Kia had already invested $300 million in Ola Electric in 2019.

    Ola Navigating Through Troubled Waters

    For Ola Electric, the divestment occurs during a challenging period. The business has been battling declining sales, increased competition from well-known two-wheeler producers, and regulatory scrutiny.

    Since August 2024, when it went public, its stock has fallen 46%. Ola Electric has predicted a drop in revenue for the first quarter of the new fiscal year and revealed a larger fourth-quarter deficit.

    In order to combat competition, the company has been offering high discounts, which has put additional strain on its earnings.

    In addition, Ola has come under further scrutiny for the way it counts car reservations and has been the target of searches and car seizures by local transport authorities for noncompliance with regulations. On the NSE, Ola Electric Mobility’s shares fell 7.58% to settle at INR 49.61 per share.

    Ola’s Recent Financial Dynamics

    Ola Electric stated this week that it is aiming for profitability in the current fiscal year, despite reporting a consolidated net loss of INR 870 crore for the fourth quarter that ended on March 31, 2025.

    In the January–March quarter of the fiscal year 2023–24, the corporation reported a net loss of INR 416 crore. According to the corporation, operating revenue decreased to INR 611 crore from INR 1,598 crore during the same time last year.

    The company’s net loss for FY25 was INR 2,276 crore, compared to INR 1,584 crore for the fiscal year 2023–2024. It further stated that its operating revenue decreased to INR 4,514 crore from INR 5,010 crore in FY24.

  • Bessemer Venture Partners Brings in Pankaj Mitra as Partner to Lead AI and Tech Investments in India

    Bessemer Venture Partners announced the appointment of Pankaj Mitra as Partner in its India practice. The tech industry veteran will focus primarily on investments in enterprise tech, AI, and cybersecurity.  

    With more than 25 years of experience, Pankaj joins Bessemer from Cisco’s corporate development team, where for the past seven years he led investments and M&A activity for its global Customer Experiences portfolio as well as for India. Some of his investments include Fiddler (AI observability), Uniphore (contact center AI), and Whatfix (digital adoption). He has also worked at Infosys in a similar capacity and was part of the founding team for its $500 million innovation fund. His investments at Infosys included Ideaforge (NSE: IDEAFORGE) and Whoop. Earlier in his career, Pankaj helped launch VMware’s first cloud services as a product manager and was also a management consultant at Deloitte.

    An Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur alumnus, Pankaj also holds an MBA from UC Berkeley Haas School of Business.

    Commenting on the appointment, Vishal Gupta, Partner, said, “We are delighted to welcome Pankaj to the Bessemer family. Pankaj brings a breadth of experience which is a unique blend of investing prowess as well as deep industry knowledge. This will be invaluable as we look to deepen our commitments in AI, enterprise-tech, and cybersecurity in India.” 

    Pankaj himself commented, “I am thrilled to join Bessemer at this pivotal time.  The ongoing AI platform shift offers a once in a generation opportunity for builders to usher in the next wave of tech evolution across industries.  With its stellar track record, Bessemer is poised to partner with this new generation of ambitious, world-class founders in India addressing pain points domestically and globally, and I’m excited to be part of this journey.”

    Bessemer has been active in India for the past two decades. The firm’s legacy investments include Mediassist, Perfios, Swiggy, Urban Company, among others. Some of its more recent partnerships have been with Boldfit, Easebuzz, Protectt, Shopdeck and more. Bessemer announced its second India fund with $350 million of capital in March this year, with a focus on AI, fintech, enterprise-tech, digital health, consumer, and cybersecurity. 

    About Bessemer Venture Partners

    Bessemer Venture Partners helps entrepreneurs lay strong foundations to build and forge long-standing companies. With more than 145 IPOs and 300 portfolio companies in the enterprise, consumer and healthcare spaces, Bessemer supports founders and CEOs from their early days through every stage of growth. Bessemer’s global portfolio has included ServiceTitan, Pinterest, Shopify, Twilio, Yelp, LinkedIn, PagerDuty, DocuSign, Wix, Fiverr, and Toast and has more than $18 billion of assets under management. Bessemer has teams of investors and partners located in Tel Aviv, Silicon Valley, San Francisco, New York, London, Hong Kong, Boston, and Bangalore. Born from innovations in steel more than a century ago, Bessemer’s storied history has afforded its partners the opportunity to celebrate and scrutinise its best investment decisions and also learn from its mistakes. 

    Bessemer Venture Partners Raises $350 Million India Fund to Back Next-Generation of Startups
    Bessemer Venture Partners announced the close of $350 million in capital for its second dedicated India fund, reinforcing the firm’s long-standing commitment to backing founders in the region as they build enduring companies.
    StartupTalkyMuskaan Kapoor

  • Good Glamm Group Misses Salaries for 2nd Month in a Row: Trouble Deepens for Beauty Unicorn

    According to reports, Good Glamm Group has postponed staff salaries for the second consecutive month in May.

    April and May’s pay were meant to coincide, according to a news source that quoted an employee, but that doesn’t appear likely to happen anytime soon. It’s clear to everyone now that funding is the reason.

    The financing has been delayed since January, when Good Glamm Group was expecting it to come. Payroll for April has already been postponed by the corporation. According to reports at the time, the business had told its staff that they would get paid in June for both April and May.

    Salary credits have not yet been issued, though, and management has not yet responded to enquiries about the delay.

    Payments of Freelancers and  Former Employees Also Put on Hold

    The Good Glamm Group has not yet paid its former workers’ and freelancers’ debts, according to the report. The unicorn is still owed INR 18,100, according to a LinkedIn post by Babita Bharati, a freelance copywriter for Good Glamm’s portfolio business The Moms Co.

    According to Bharati’s post, working as a freelancer is difficult, and organisations like #GoodGlammGroup make it much more difficult. She also mentioned that in March and April of 2025, she worked as a freelance copywriter for The Moms Co. | Good Glamm Group, but she is currently experiencing problems getting them to pay her for her work.

    Additionally, Bharati stated that she contacted over five different individuals within the company, noting that many members of the startup’s finance team were either already on notice or had departed.

    In order to increase liquidand maity intain business operations, the content-to-commerce startup is apparently thinking about returning its ownership of Organic Harvest to the company’s founders, according to a media report. In 2022, the Good Glamm Group bought the bulk of Organic Harvest.

    Despite this, there have been numerous resignations due to the firm’s instability. Kartik Rao, the startup’s chief people officer and a board member of WYN Beauty, a joint venture with Serena Williams, recently left the company to join the AI-driven recruitment platform Vahan.ai.

    Delaying Salaries has Become Common Practice of Good Glamm in 2025

    This year alone, the corporation has postponed salaries three times. Payouts for a portion of the company’s workforce were already postponed in January after a possible funding round fell through.

    However, it eventually paid down the outstanding balances in instalments. The founders of acquired businesses like Sirona and The Moms Co., as well as investor IAN, have sent the company default notifications for nonpayment over the past year.

    The unicorn has also conducted huge layoffs and offered several of its brands for sale in an effort to lengthen its runway. Recent rumours that supporters Accel, Prosus, and Bessemer have resigned from the company’s board have made the situation worse.

    Its growing losses, shortcomings in product development, excessive marketing expenditures, low sales, and a decline in skincare product quality are all major contributors to this.

    Important members of the product and marketing teams of numerous brands that the unicorn purchased are said to have been sidelined by the beauty-focused D2C platform, which has caused brand dilution and driven many of these brands further away from profitability.

  • KiranaPro Hacked: Servers Wiped Out in Major Breach, Confirms CEO

    The founder of the Indian grocery delivery startup KiranaPro told a media outlet that the company had been hacked and all of its data had been erased.

    Deepak Ravindran, co-founder and CEO of KiranaPro, told a media source that among the deleted data were the company’s app code and its servers that included banks of private client data, such as names, mailing addresses, and payment information.

    Established in December 2024, KiranaPro functions as a buyer app on the Open Network for Digital Commerce of the Indian government, enabling users to buy goods from neighbouring supermarkets and local stores.

    According to the company, KiranaPro has 55,000 consumers, with 30,000–35,000 active purchasers spread throughout 50 cities, placing 2,000 orders per day.

    In contrast to other grocery delivery apps, KiranaPro has a voice-based interface that lets users utilise voice commands in Hindi, Tamil, Malayalam, and English to place orders from nearby stores.

    KiranaPro was Planning to Expand to 100 Cities in 100 Days

    According to Ravindran, the business had intended to reach 100 cities in the 100 days prior to the tragedy. Executives at KiranaPro learnt of the incident on May 26 while accessing their Amazon Web Services account.

    Ravindran told the media that hackers were able to access KiranaPro’s root accounts on GitHub and AWS.

    A file with a sample of activity logs from around the time of the event and a few screenshots of the GitHub security logs were supplied by Ravindran, indicating that the hack occurred after someone obtained access to their systems using a former employee’s account.

     According to Saurav Kumar, chief technology officer at KiranaPro, the attack occurred between May 24 and 25.

    KiranaPro Used Google Authenticator

    The business claimed to have implemented multi-factor authentication on its AWS account using Google Authenticator.

    When they attempted to enter their AWS account last week, Kumar said, the multi-factor code had changed, and all of their Electric Compute Cloud (EC2) services—which provided clients with virtual computers to run their apps—were erased.

    He pointed out that the KiranaPro team can only access the system by using their IAM [Identity and Access Management] account, which allows them to see that the EC2 instances are no longer there.

    However, because they lack the root account, they are unable to obtain any logs or other information. According to Ravindran, KiranaPro has contacted GitHub’s support staff to assist in locating the hacker’s IP addresses and any evidence of the incident.

     Ravindran added that the business is bringing legal action against its former workers, claiming that they failed to provide their login information so that they could access their GitHub accounts and view their logs.

    The manner of the attack remains unknown. Credential theft, including the installation of malware that steals passwords on an employee’s laptop and the absence or non-enforcement of multi-factor authentication, was the source of some of the largest assaults in recent years, including LastPass, Change Healthcare, and Snowflake.

  • Aakash Drags EY Into Byju’s Battle: NCLT Petition Adds New Twist to Edtech Dispute

    According to court documents examined by a media group, the conflict between Aakash Educational Services (AESL) and edtech company Byju’s has intensified.

    Aakash filed a strongly worded petition before the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) in Bengaluru, accusing international consulting firm Ernst & Young (EY) of professional misconduct and conflict of interest.

    In a June 1 implementation application, AESL has sought the tribunal to either declare EY LLP and its partner Ajay Shah respondents in the case or dismiss Byju’s company petition, which was filed under Sections 241 and 242 of the Companies Act and claimed oppression and mismanagement.

    AESL Allegations Against EY

    Through Shailendra Ajmera, Byju’s Resolution Professional (RP) and a senior EY employee, AESL claims that EY, which has provided the company with a wide range of strategic, financial, and compliance-related advice services, is now working against it.

     According to the application, this is a typical instance of conflict of interest and procedural abuse. EY designed and managed the very transactions that are currently under attack in the petition, including the issuance and conversion of non-convertible debentures (NCDs), equity restructuring, and internal governance issues.

    The petition states that EY provided advice to Davidson Kempner about the structuring and valuation of NCDs. Additionally, it offered tax and regulatory advice with the transfer of shares to the Manipal group.

    Furthermore, as recently as October 2024, EY participated in corporate strategy and internal board-level decisions at AESL.

    AESL Showcased Evidences to Validate its Claims

    In order to demonstrate EY’s purported participation in financial forecasts, liquidity management, and decision-making processes, AESL is displaying internal emails and advisory documents.

    According to AESL’s submission, the RP has concealed important information, is going outside his authority under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), and lacks standing to submit this petition under the Companies Act.

    Ajmera’s status as RP is “severely compromised”, according to AESL, which has also threatened to take the issue to authorities, such as the Ministry of Corporate Affairs and the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI).

    The action signals a larger governance challenge in the continuing battle, as the RP wrote to the AESL board a few days ago to ask for clarification on the independence and nomination status of its directors.

    One of the main points of contention in the edtech giant’s continuous financial and legal issues is the dispute over Aakash, which Byju’s purchased in 2021 for $1 billion.

    The board of AESL is currently under the leadership of the Manipal company, which acquired a sizable interest by turning debt into equity.

    This submission challenges Byju’s petition’s validity as well as the advisers’ professional neutrality, setting up AESL for a full-scale legal and reputational onslaught. The RP and EY have not yet submitted a formal response to the implementation request.