Mumbai-based edtech startup, Lido Learning, has reportedly laid off over 150-200 employees, according to some employees told?Inc42.
According to several employees, in a virtual town hall that took place earlier this month, Lido Learning¡¯s founder, Sahil Sheth, informed the team that the startup is facing financial difficulties and will not be able to pay the salaries of employees for the month of January and the first week of February.?
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Here it¡¯s important to note that the Edtech startup Lido had raised $10 million about five months ago in September 2021, getting funds from Ronnie Screwvala¡¯s Unilazer Ventures.?
About 10 employees of the startup confirmed to Inc42 about the current state of affairs at Lido.
According to Lido¡¯s employees, while the company has assured that the pending salaries will be paid within ¡°30 to 90 days¡±, however, as per employees, it looks unlikely, given the company¡¯s current financial health.?
In?an email sent to teachers associated with Lido Learning, the edtech startup accepted that the company was facing financial difficulties and that their payments will be cleared in the next 90 days, reported?Inc42. It is learnt that most of Lido¡¯s teachers who work on a contractual basis were credited 20% of their salaries last week.
According to a few Lido employees, the company has already asked team members to look out for job opportunities.
They added that though their immediate managers are helping them get a job, no such efforts have been shown by the senior management of the company.
Another employee claimed that Founder Sheth had mentioned that one of the investors had backed out after committing an investment. The startup is in talks for bigger funding or a possible merger.
As per Inc42, multiple social media posts show that even employees who have parted their way with Lido last year were yet to receive their salaries.
Signals of financial trouble were already in line, as the startup¡¯s expenses in FY21 almost shot up by 1.4 times, mostly due to the significant rise in employee expenses. It had spent INR 70 Cr, a 47.9% increase from INR 47.3 Cr it incurred in FY20.
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For the uninitiated, Lido Learning started in 2019 and offers small-group online tutoring to the K-12 segment. It coaches students in subjects including Maths, Science, Coding, and English.?
The startup claims that its curriculum has been designed by experts from Stanford, Harvard, and IITs. Plus, its classes have at max eight students in a class, and it uses a combination of AI, an immersive curriculum, and gamification to ensure success for every child.
Since its launch, Lido Learning has reportedly raised close to $24 Mn in funding and counts BAce Capital, Picus Capital, angel investors such as Anupam Mittal, Mensa Brands¡¯ Ananth Naryanan, and JK Tyres¡¯ MD Vikrampati Singhania, among others, as its investors.
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