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Byju Raveendran, once celebrated as the face of India’s edtech boom, is now facing one of the biggest legal setbacks of his career. This happened after a Singapore court sentenced him to six months in jail in a contempt of court case. The case was linked to non-compliance with disclosure orders regarding his assets.

According to reports, the court found that Raveendran failed to comply with multiple directions related to the disclosure of documents since April 2024. The details were connected to ownership records and documents linked to his Singapore-based entities. Bloomberg reported that the court also directed him to surrender before authorities, pay legal costs of 90,000 Singapore dollars (around Rs 67 lakh), and furnish documents proving ownership of Beeaar Investco Pte, a company linked to related shareholdings.

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The latest ruling marks another major setback for Byju’s, once India’s most valuable startup with a peak valuation of nearly $22 billion during the pandemic-era online education boom. Founded in 2011 as Think & Learn Pvt Ltd, Byju’s grew rapidly as online learning expanded across India.

However, the company’s fortunes changed sharply after the pandemic slowdown. Byju’s began facing delayed financial filings, governance concerns, mounting debt, layoffs, unpaid salaries, investor disputes, and multiple lawsuits across different countries. The downfall of the company became one of the most dramatic corporate collapses in startup history.

A major turning point came in 2021 when the company raised a $1.2 billion term loan from overseas lenders. By late 2022-23 the relationship between the company and its lenders had broken down. Then the  lenders accused the company of violating loan conditions and later alleged that around $533 million linked to the loan had been transferred without proper disclosure.

This triggered a series of legal battles in the United States and Singapore. US lenders accused the company of hiding assets and moving funds offshore, while Byju’s alleged that lenders and entities such as GLAS Trust misrepresented facts during legal proceedings.

In December 2025, a Delaware court reversed an earlier $1 billion judgment against Raveendran after reviewing fresh submissions filed through a correction motion. The court observed that damages had not been properly determined and ordered a fresh phase of proceedings.

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Responding to the latest Singapore ruling, Raveendran denied wrongdoing and described the order as procedural. In a statement on X, he said, “the parties have acknowledged there is no wrongdoing on my part or by the other founders.”

He further said, “For months, the lenders (including GLAS Trust and QIA), other stakeholders and us (the founders) have been in advanced settlement discussions. A settlement has been agreed in principle, with only minor residual issues left between certain parties - none involving me.”

Raveendran added that he was disappointed that the matter was being presented in a misleading manner. “Even today, my priority is to support a constructive resolution and avoid saying anything that may affect the ongoing settlement process. However, I cannot allow a false and one-sided narrative to go uncontested and I strongly reject any such incorrect portrayal,” he said, as quoted by The Hindu.

He also stated, “I have always acted in good faith - for BYJU'S, its employees, its students, and everyone who built this with us. After giving everything back, I remain committed to seeing this through to a constructive resolution.”

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