Prosus has marked down the valuation of Byju’s, India’s most valuable startup, to below $3 billion, the investment giant’s executives said on an earnings call Wednesday even as they asserted that they remain bullish on the opportunities in the South Asian market.
The Bengaluru-headquartered startup, which has raised over $5 billion in equity and debt over the years, was valued at $22 billion in its last financing round in early 2022. Prosus has been consistently adjusting the worth of its holding in Byju’s, in which it owns over 9% stake, for more than a year. At the end of March this year, Prosus valued Byju’s at $5.1 billion.
Executives at Prosus, which is also one of the earlier backers of Byju’s, said Wednesday that the edtech giant is scrambling through many “challenges,” and Prosus as well as some other investors are engaging with the startup to help it recover.
Prosus identified Byju and Pharmeasy, an online pharmacy startup that this year raised capital at a valuation about 90% below its 2021 highs, among the “large underperformers.”
But not everything is gloom for Prosus, which has deployed billions in India. The firm said its payments giant PayU will look to file for an initial public offering in the second half of 2024 and other portfolio startups including Swiggy are growing efficiently.
More to follow.