Khaitan & Co, SAM, Trilegal Advise on Byju's USD 1 Billion Acquisition of Aakash Educational Services Limited

Earlier this month, Khaitan & Co advised Aakash Educational Services Limited (Aakash) and its founders on sale of their shares in Aakash to Think & Learn Private Limited (Byju's) through a combination of cash and stock that will result in Aakash's business consolidation with Byju's. Effected by way of a strategic merger, the deal was made for a consideration of USD 1 Billion.

Aakash Educational Services Limited operates in the coaching industry in India. It also offers short-term classroom courses to prepare students for upcoming examinations. The company provides its services through classroom-based coaching and digital and distance learning under the Aakash Medical, Aakash IIT-JEE, and Aakash Foundations brands.

The core team of Khaitan & Co consisted of Bharat Anand (Partner), Nidhi Killawala (Partner), Nimisha Trehan (Principal Associate) and Akshay Sharma (Principal Associate) with assistance from the following: 

• Competition law aspects and the Antitrust filings: Manas Kumar Chaudhuri (Partner), Pranjal Prateek (Partner) and Alisha Mehra (Associate)
• Merger and other corporate aspects: Atul Pandey (Partner), Hirak Mukhopadhyay (Principal Associate), Nikita Bhuwania (Principal Associate), Pulkit Chaturvedi (Senior Associate), Varun Yadav (Associate) and Aayush Thapar (Associate)
• Intellectual property law aspects: Shailendra Bhandare (Partner)
• Employment law aspects: Anshul Prakash (Partner) and Abhinav Rastogi (Counsel)

On the deal, Byju's was advised by Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas and Trilegal advised the Blackstone Group— Aakash's primary backer.