Byju’s-owned test prep company names ex-Pearson India head as CEO

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Byju’s-owned Aakash Educational Services Limited (AESL) has named Deepak Mehrotra as its managing director (MD) and CEO.

This aligns with AESL’s aim to improve and widen its operations. The appointment will enable AESL to leverage Mehrotra’s business expertise from his time as MD at Pearson India.

Mehrotra has over 30 years of experience across multiple sectors including fast-moving consumer goods, telecom, and education. He has also held key roles in companies like Ashirvad Pipes, Bharti Airtel, Coca-Cola, and Asian Paints.

“In his role as CEO, he will be responsible to deliver on our aggressive growth plan and to build on the significant momentum the company is currently experiencing,” said Byju Raveendran, founder and chairman of Byju’s.

The appointment comes close on the heels of Byju’s and AESL withdrawing their merger petition in March on matters related to governance issues and share-swap arrangements. The former had acquired AESL for US$940 million in 2021.

Byju’s itself is facing financial challenges and is entangled in a legal dispute with its investors, some of whom are pushing for the removal of Raveendran from his leadership role in the company.

The firm’s US division also filed for bankruptcy earlier this year, as the unit – Byju’s Alpha – defaulted on US$1.2 billion in debt.

See also: Charting Byju’s 99% fall in valuation