The founder of Indian educational technology firm Byju's, Byju Raveendran, faces a contempt ​of court order ⁠in Singapore for not returning funds borrowed from the ‌Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), a source with direct knowledge of the matter ​told Reuters on Wednesday.

* The order relates to a $150 million loan ​from the sovereign ​wealth fund to Byju's Singapore-based investment firm, the source said, speaking on the condition of anonymity as ⁠the order is not yet public.

* The QIA approached a Singapore court and Raveendran was asked to repay the loan in 2025, the source said.

* In a statement on ​Wednesday, ‌Raveendran said lenders, including ⁠GLAS Trust ⁠and the QIA, had "agreed in principle" to a settlement, with only ​minor issues left to be finalized.

* "The ‌decision by QIA to continue pressing ⁠this matter appears to be an unnecessary pressure tactic at a sensitive stage of the settlement process," Raveendran said.

* "QIA is happy with the court ruling," a spokesperson for the firm said.

* GLAS Trust did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment.

* The Byju founder was sentenced to six months in prison and ordered to pay ‌costs of 90,000 Singapore dollars ($70,000), Bloomberg News reported on ⁠Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter.

* ​The case is the latest setback for Raveendran, who is facing claims from overseas investors, including some in the U.S., ​where lenders ‌are seeking to recover losses from a $1.2 billion ⁠loan. ($1=S$1.2771)

(Reporting by Aditya Kalra; ​Writing by Kashish Tandon; Editing by Thomas Derpinghaus)