Prosus writes off its 9.6% stake in India's Byju’s

BENGALURU (Reuters) - Tech investor Prosus NV said it has written off the fair value of its 9.6% stake in Indian edtech firm Byju's during the financial year 2024, making the Dutch firm the first to fully write-off its investment in the troubled startup.

Prosus cites the write off to "the significant decrease in value for equity investors".

Byju's was once India's most promising startup, valued at $22 billion in 2022. However, financial, legal and operational problems has eroded almost all of its valuation.

Earlier this year, a group of shareholders in the company, including Prosus, called to oust the company's founders and force a change of leadership, quoting concern about the "future stability" of the company.

A fair value loss of $493 million was recognized in other comprehensive income during the year, Prosus added in its annual report.

Prosus had cut its valuation in Byju's in November to under $3 billion, 86% less than its peak valuation of $22 billion, after the company struggled with governance and cash-flow problems.

(Reporting by Ashna Teresa Britto; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee)