Byju's CFO, Ajay Goel, Resigns to Return to Vedanta for Demerger Oversight

Ajay Goel, the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Byju's, has resigned from the edtech company after just six months in the role.He will return to his previous company, Vedanta, which is undergoing a major demerger, splitting its business into six entities. Goel's departure comes at a critical time for Byju's, as it has yet to file its financial results for FY22 and is dealing with issues related to a billion-dollar loan, as well as seeking new capital.

In response to Goel's departure, Byju's has made new appointments in its finance function. Pradip Kanakia will serve as a senior advisor, and Nitin Golani, who currently holds the position of President-Finance, will take on the role of India CFO.

Goel expressed his gratitude to the founders and colleagues at Byju's for their support during his tenure. He will complete the formalities of the FY22 audit before transitioning to his new role.

Nitin Golani, the incoming India CFO, previously served as the Chief Strategy Officer at Aakash Education and played a pivotal role in Byju's $1 billion acquisition of Aakash in 2021.

Byju's previous CFO, PV Rao, resigned in December 2021, and Goel was appointed as his successor 16 months later, in April 2023. During his time as CFO, Goel focused on implementing systems and compliance at Byju's, including the transition from Deloitte to BDO as the company's auditor.

Byju's is currently in the process of renegotiating terms with its creditors. It raised a term loan of $1.2 billion from various investors in 2021. The company, India's most valuable startup, has faced various challenges since the beginning of 2022, including accounting irregularities, allegations of course mis-selling, and layoffs due to funding shortages and declining demand for online learning services.

The departure of key personnel and differences with founder Byju Raveendran have also affected the company's stability. Byju's is now working to recover and streamline its operations. It is in discussions to divest assets such as Great Learning and Epic and is raising capital for its subsidiary, Aakash.