Great Learning has reported a notable growth of nearly 25% with improved control over losses for the financial year ending in March 2023, marking its first full fiscal year under Byju’s ownership since the acquisition in July 2021. According to annual financial statements filed with the Registrar of Companies, the company’s revenue from operations surged by 24.9%, reaching Rs 391 crore in FY23 from Rs 313 crore in FY22.
The diverse educational platform, offering programs in areas such as data science, analytics, AI, machine learning, and more, showcased resilience with digital content contributing 48% to the total revenue, marking a 6.3% increase to Rs 187 crore in FY23.
While employee benefits formed 53% of the overall expenditure, the cost decreased by 4.9% to Rs 328 crore in FY23, including a non-cash ESOP cost of Rs 26 crore. Various costs, including advertising, legal fees, IT expenses, and overheads, led to a total expenditure of Rs 614 crore in FY23, slightly down from Rs 633 crore in FY22.
Great Learning’s strategic move to scale up by 25% and manage expenditure effectively resulted in a 27.7% reduction in losses, reaching Rs 222 crore in FY23 from Rs 307 crore in FY22. The EBITDA margin showed improvement, standing at -51% during FY23.
On a unit level, the company spent Rs 1.57 to earn a rupee of operating revenue. Despite being part of one of the prominent acquisition deals, with Byju’s investing $600 million, reports suggest that Byju’s has considered selling Great Learning, along with US-based Epic, to clear its debt.
Byju’s, led by Byju Raveendran, has made significant strides in disclosing its revenue from the core business, indicating substantial growth. However, audited financial statements for FY22 and FY23 are yet to be filed.
While acknowledging challenges and mistakes at Byju’s, particularly in communication, Great Learning faces uncertainties in a dynamic edtech landscape. The business model remains a work in progress, susceptible to disruptions and influenced by issues at its promoter entity. Great Learning’s moment of reckoning may arrive sooner than later if it doesn’t swiftly address its losses, considering the evolving competitive landscape in the education sector.
