FIITJEE
FIITJEE is a decades-old Indian coaching chain for JEE and NEET entrance exam prep.
On the record
Checkpoint: Promised start of proportionate fee refunds to affected students
The call
FIITJEE's own unpaid fees, closed centres, and fraud probes are pushing students toward Physics Wallah and Aakash faster than any product could.
FIITJEE teaches students for India's tough JEE and NEET entrance exams through centers and online classes. The company is now nearly impossible to save because its own leadership closed hundreds centers without warning, kept ₹250 crore in student advance fees, and left thousands of teachers unpaid, destroying trust that took decades to build. Rivals like Physics Wallah and Aakash are openly grabbing its fleeing students and teachers by offering better pay, modern AI tutoring tools, and stable operations. The real test arrives in June 2026 when FIITJEE must start refunding those ₹250 crore in stolen fees; if that deadline slips even once, the company will likely be finished, and new criminal charges could speed that collapse.
Why
01
AI pressure: Physics Wallah (AI doubt-solving app and live classes). Physics Wallah's AI doubt-solver and cheap live classes are pulling FIITJEE's fleeing students and faculty right now. Could AI do the core job? Yes, likely.
02
Bigger players: Aakash Educational Services (Manipal Group). Aakash is absorbing displaced FIITJEE students and staff as centres shut, backed by Manipal Group money and 300+ locations. Could a giant copy it? Yes, easily.
03
What protects it. Some parents still recall FIITJEE's old JEE results and keep enrolling out of habit, but that recall is fading fast.
What would change this call
Whether FIITJEE's promised refund cycle starts and completes by late June 2026. Shows whether FIITJEE can meet obligations or faces going-concern failure.
Whether Delhi Police EOW or ED files new arrests, chargesheets, or asset freezes in coming months. Shows whether legal exposure is escalating beyond current investigations.
Whether further FIITJEE centres close or the 'FIITJEE Universe' licensee model shows partner disputes during 2026-27 admissions cycle. Shows whether student and faculty attrition to Physics Wallah and Aakash continues.
Whether Delhi Police EOW or ED files new arrests, chargesheets, or asset freezes in coming months. Shows whether legal exposure is escalating beyond current investigations.
Whether further FIITJEE centres close or the 'FIITJEE Universe' licensee model shows partner disputes during 2026-27 admissions cycle. Shows whether student and faculty attrition to Physics Wallah and Aakash continues.
Key numbers
- ₹250.2 crore in advance fees held from 14,411 students
- Enrollment fell from 80,000 to 55,000-60,000
- 32 of about 70-73 centres shut
Named risks
- Enforcement Directorate PMLA money laundering probe remains active despite press release withdrawal in May 2026.
- Delhi Police EOW criminal case with ~258 complainants could produce arrests or asset freezes.
- Promised refund schedules (due June 15, 2026, processing late June 2026) may slip again given past broken promises.
- Untested FIITJEE Universe licensee model could repeat 2023 Managing Partner model failure.
Rivals, as read in July 2026
| Rival | Direction | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Physics Wallah | gaining on | IPO'd November 2025 at ~3,480 crore rupees, 303+ centres by 2025-06-30, absorbing FIITJEE's fleeing students |
| Aakash Educational Services | gaining on | 300+ centres under Manipal Group's Ranjan Pai as of 2025-07-07, rebuilding brand post-Byju's insolvency |
| Allen Career Institute | contesting | Viewed as Kota's premium gold standard, pushing Allen Digital, retains reputation FIITJEE lost since 2025 |
Questions people ask
- Is FIITJEE financially stable in 2026?
- No. FIITJEE promised refund schedules by June 15, 2026 and processing from late June 2026 after Enforcement Directorate found it collected about 250.2 crore rupees in advance fees from 14,411 students for 2025-26 through 2028-29 sessions, per an April 26, 2025 Livemint report.
- Did FIITJEE lose students to Physics Wallah and Aakash?
- Yes. Founder D.K. Goel said enrollment fell from about 80,000 in January 2025 to 55,000-60,000 by late April 2025, coinciding with Physics Wallah's November 2025 IPO and 303+ centre expansion, per Livemint and Trade Brains reporting.
- Is FIITJEE under criminal investigation?
- Yes. Delhi Police's Economic Offences Wing filed a case with roughly 258 complainants as of March 2025, and the Enforcement Directorate raided 7-8 premises in Delhi-NCR under money laundering law on April 24, 2025, seizing cash and gold.
- Who owns FIITJEE?
- FIITJEE Limited is a private, unlisted company controlled by founder D.K. Goel since 1992. Matrix Partners invested about 100 crore rupees around 2009, and Mauritius-based QLearn sold roughly 19.5 lakh shares to Ambit Group in July 2015, per Indian Express.
- Is it safe to enroll in or work for FIITJEE right now?
- Risk is high. About 32 of roughly 70-73 centres were shut per ED estimates reported April 27, 2025, staff reported unpaid salaries in a December 2024 leaked video, and refund promises made February 2026 have not yet been fully executed as of mid-2026.
- Can AI replace FIITJEE's coaching model?
- FIITJEE has not publicly shipped any AI feature, while rival Physics Wallah built an AI doubt-solver called Sarthi AI (vendor-claimed, reported March 20, 2026) and IPO'd in November 2025 at roughly 3,480 crore rupees, directly targeting FIITJEE's former low-cost market.
Timeline
- 2026-05-06Delhi High Court records ED's unconditional withdrawal of its April 2025 press release against FIITJEE
- 2026-02-26FIITJEE announces centralized refund process for Delhi-NCR students, schedules due June 15, 2026
- 2025-04-27Founder D.K. Goel says enrollment fell from 80,000 to 55,000-60,000 amid crisis
- 2025-04-26ED finds FIITJEE collected about 250.2 crore rupees in advance fees from 14,411 students
- 2025-04-24ED raids 7-8 premises in Delhi, Noida, Gurugram under money laundering law
- 2025-04CFO Rajeev Babbar detained and questioned at Delhi airport by Delhi Police EOW
- 2025-01Mass unannounced centre closures across Noida, Ghaziabad, Delhi, Ranchi, Bhopal, Varanasi; FIRs filed
- 2024-12Leaked video shows chairman D.K. Goel verbally abusing staff over unpaid salaries
- 2024-08FIITJEE abruptly suspends offline classes at multiple centres, shifting students to eSchool
Revision history
26 July 2026
First assessed. Little protection left. The text above is fixed as of this date and is not edited afterwards.
In the same band
Sources
- Entrackr (2023-12-06)
- Entrackr (2022-12-12)
- Livemint (2025-04-26)
- Livemint (2025-04-27)
- The Hindu (2025-02-08)
- Indian Express (2017-11-06)
- Wikiwand
- Indian Express (2026-02-26)
- News18 (2025-01-24)
- NDTV (2025-01-24)
- Indian Express (2025-04-26)
- Wikipedia (2026-05-25)