With Rs 20 crore earnings, Byju’s has a lesson for unicorns

NEW DELHI: Think and Learn, which owns and operates educational technology platform Byju’s, posted net income of Rs 20.16 crore in the financial year ended March 31, making it the only profitable consumer internet unicorn in the country.

Byju’s posted a net loss of Rs 28.65 crore on a standalone basis in fiscal year 2018.

The Bengaluru-based company managed to turn in a profit as the number of paid users — which currently stands at about 2.8 million — increased.


Byju’s claims it has 40 million registered users on its platform. Total expenses for fiscal year 2019, however, rose to Rs 1,321.65 crore from Rs 518.52 crore in the year-ago period, as employee benefit expenses, marketing and promotional costs rose significantly. Total income jumped to Rs 1,341 crore from Rs 490 crore.

The company has forecast revenue of Rs 3,000 crore in the 2019-20 financial year.

“Expanding our base across smaller towns and cities and introducing new products have been pivotal to our growth. Our performance is a reflection of the increasing acceptance and adoption of digital learning across India. With 60% of our students based outside the metros, the aspiration and need for quality learning has never been higher,” said Mrinal Mohit, chief operating officer, Byju’s, in a statement.

Byju’s, which counts General Atlantic, Naspers, Verlinvest, Sequoia Capital, Qatar Investment Authority, Tencent, Owl Ventures and CPPIB among its list of investors, is valued at $6.5 billion, making it one of the most richly valued ventures to have emerged from the Indian startup ecosystem.

In May, Byju Raveendran, its chief executive, said Byju’s had reached a monthly run rate of Rs 200 crore due to high renewal rates, which on average, were at 85% with some grades exceeding the 90% mark.

In June, the company, along with the Walt Disney Co, jointly rolled out a new learning app targeted at children aged 6-8 years.