Settlement talks between Manipal Education and Medical Group and GLAS Trust, which represents Byju’s US lenders, have moved into an advanced stage to resolve the Aakash Educational Services shareholding dispute ahead of a crucial NCLT (National Company Law Tribunal) hearing on June 23, people aware of the matter said.
The discussions are aimed at settling the most contentious part of Byju’s insolvency proceedings: how the value of Aakash, the test-prep company that remains the group’s most valuable asset, is divided among Manipal, Think & Learn’s creditors, and entities linked to founder Byju Raveendran and his family.
The proposed settlement is expected to address three sets of Aakash shares that have been at the centre of the dispute. Manipal, led by Ranjan Pai, is the largest shareholder in Aakash with about 58% stake. Byju’s parent Think & Learn held 25.75% before Aakash initiated a rights issue that could have reduced its holding to about 5%, prompting objections from GLAS and the resolution professional. A separate block of 17,891,289 Aakash shares linked to Beeaar Investco, a Singapore entity connected to Raveendran, is also relevant because of Qatar Investment Authority’s claims against him.
“There has been decent progress in deal discussions, and the parties are working on final documentation. If the settlement progresses, the terms may be placed before the NCLT on June 23. Otherwise, the parties may seek more time,” said one of the people quoted above.
Detailed queries sent to Raveendran, Think & Learn's resolution professional, Manipal Group and GLAS remained unanswered.
