NCLT grants Byju’s one week to settle Rs 5 cr payment dispute with Teleperformance

The Bengaluru bench of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has granted troubled edtech major Byju’s a one-week extension to negotiate a settlement with Teleperformance Business Services.

France-based operational creditor Teleperformance Business Services had initiated insolvency proceedings against Byju’s after the edtech firm failed to clear dues amounting to Rs 5 crore.

During the hearing, Byju’s counsel requested additional time from the tribunal to reach an agreement with the French vendor.

Acknowledging the default, Byju’s has proposed a structured payment plan, offering an initial payment of 1.5 crore, followed by susequent instalments of Rs 2 crore and Rs 2.2 crore.

Teleperformance had informed the tribunal that Byju’s began defaulting on its payments starting April 14, 2023. The outstanding amount, including interest at 18% per annum as stipulated in the initial agreement, stands at Rs 5.3 crore.

Teleperformance provides business process outsourcing services to Byju’s, specifically call centre-related services under the agreement.

In October 2023, Teleperformance had issued a demand notice to Byju’s, which was served to the company’s directors and registered offices. However, Byju’s did not dispute the claims.

While Byju’s claims to have made an initial payment of 1.5 crore, Teleperformance has contested this assertion.

The NCLT has scheduled a final hearing for April 30, allowing the parties time to finalise their settlement.