Blackstone And Chaudhry Family Likely To Sell Remaining 18% Stake In Byju's-Owned Aakash

PE firm Blackstone and Akash Educational Services Limited (AESL) founder Chaudhry family plan to sell their remaining 18 per cent stake in the tutoring chain soon. Recently appointed Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Deepak Mehrotra will drive AESL's strategic vision to enhance offerings, expand reach and impact the tutorial market positively. The sale by the two shareholders comes as the company enters a new academic year with strong student enrollment, aiming to capitalise on this growth.

Blackstone and the Chaudhry family are considering selling to private equity investors interested in the company, now a subsidiary of Think & Learn. Recent media reports indicate AESL could be an M&A target, with investors like Bain Capital, Warburg Pincus and KKR showing interest.

AESL, the Jewel crown of Think & Learn, saw profits rise to 82 per cent from Rs 79.5 crore and a 45 per cent revenue increase to Rs 1,421 crore in 2021-22. Think & Learn, Ranjan Pai and Byju Raveendran hold 82 per cent of Aakash, while Blackstone and the Chaudhrys hold the remaining 18 per cent.