India’s most valued startup Byju’s has presented an unfailingly optimistic view, telling stakeholders over the past three months that its much-delayed FY21 financial results are imminent or will be filed "next week".
It has made these promises to its investors, lenders and even the government, in addition to issuing statements to publications.
On June 15, Byju’s said it would file its consolidated statements by June-end, in a response to a report filed by news website Ken.
Thereafter, on July 4, it issued a press statement to say that its financial statements for FY21 would be ready in “ten days”.
The deadline passed without financial disclosures from the company. However, each time the company had explanations ready.
"We reiterate that multiple acquisitions were made in FY21 and each of these acquisitions had a different accounting style and year,” the spokesperson had said on July 4, on why its disclosures were delayed.
In mid-July too, people in the know said the company was gearing up to publish its statements "next week”.
On August 4, company sources told Mint that Byju’s was expecting to file its statements that month.
However, by then, Byju's had already exchanged a few emails with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) to explain why its FY21 statements were delayed, according to an August 25 Bloomberg report.
Under scrutiny from the MCA, the company was preparing to file its financial statements “next week”, a person directly familiar with the company told Mint on 26 August.
On August 29, the Economic Times reported citing sources that the company had told its investors and lenders that it may hold a board meeting “next week”, which would include taking on record the company’s financial statements for FY21. It said the results would be finalized by September 6.
That day, newswire IANS also said citing company sources that Byju’s was going to file its statements “next week”.
On September 6, the Press Trust of India citing people familiar with the company said that Byju’s would release its financial statements “next week”.
Yesterday, on September 11, Byju’s spokesperson told the Financial Times newspaper that it expected to publish “annual financial results” this week, while adding that its first-quarter revenues for the current financial year had grown 50 per cent year-on-year.
