Byju’s CEO is India’s newest billionaire

India’s newest billionaire is a former classroom teacher who developed an education app that has grown to a valuation of almost $6 billion in about seven years.

Byju Raveendran, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Byju’s, joined the rarefied club after his Think & Learn Pvt scored $150 million in funding earlier this month. That deal conferred a value of $5.7 billion on the company in which the founder owns more than 21 per cent, sources said.

Who is Byju Raveendran?

The Byju’s app founder grew up in a village on India’s southern coast where his parents were school-teachers. He was a reluctant pupil, playing hooky to frequent the football field, then learning on his own at home. He became an engineer and then began helping friends crack entry exams to top Indian engineering and management schools.