Home Insight Funding Alert Edtech unicorn upGrad raises $210 mn in funding

[Funding alert] Edtech unicorn upGrad raises $210 mn in funding

Edtech unicorn upGrad
[Funding alert] Edtech unicorn upGrad raises $210 mn in funding
Ronnie Screwvala, Phalgun Kompalli and Mayank Kumar, co-founders of upGrad

Edtech firm upGrad has raised $210 million in fresh funding round from ETS Global, Bodhi Tree and Kaizen Management Advisors. 

The round also saw participation from existing investors Temasek, IFC and IIFL, as well as other investors including family offices of Bharti Airtel, Narotam Sekhsaria (Ambuja Cements), and Artisan Investments (Lakshmi Mittal).

The company said in a statement Founder Group also invested $12.5 million in this round to maintain its >50% ownership in upGrad.

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According to the company, it is on track to record annual gross revenue of $400 – $500 million during FY23.

upGrad was founded by Ronnie Screwvala, Mayank Kumar and Phalgun Kompalli in 2015, it is a edtech unicorn company, and has a user base of 3 million in over 100 countries.  It has a strong enterprise business with a customer base of over 1,000 companies worldwide.

“Higher edtech will be on the rise for the next 4 to 5 decades. upGrad, in the last 12 months, has re-shaped itself to be the most integrated company in this space with career opportunities for the college learners and working professionals from the age of 18 to 58 and will be a lifelong learning partner for millions in the coming years. We have always been very capital efficient while growing 100% year-on-year, and hope to retain that discipline,” said upGrad Co-founders Ronnie Screwvala and Mayank Kumar in a joint statement while commenting on the fund raise.  

The company seeks to increase its workforce from the current 4,800 to 7,600, and will also employ 170+ full-time faculty, 1,600+ teachers, and over 5K contracted trainers and mentors.

Last few days ago, upGrad had acquired Exampur, a test-preparation startup for government jobs for an undisclosed amount. Earlier, it had also acquired online learning institution Harappa Education, and recruitment and staffing firm WOLVES.

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Earlier this year, upGrad had raised $225 million in a fresh round of funding at a valuation of $2.25 billion.

About upGrad

Founded in 2015, upGrad is India’s largest online higher education company providing programs in Data Science, Technology, Management and Law, to students, working professionals and enterprises. Every program is designed and delivered in collaboration with top universities like the IIT Madras, MICA, NMIMS Global Access, Jindal Global Law School, Duke CE, Deakin University, Liverpool John Moores University and others. 

With an 85% program completion rate, a robust tech platform, an outcome-based learning approach, industry-relevant curriculum, strong mentorship, and placement support, upGrad has established its position as the leader in the Indian education system and is well on its way to accomplish their Vision of powering career success for every member of global workforce as their trusted lifelong learning partner.  

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upGrad has on-boarded over 40,000 paid learners while impacting more than a million individuals, globally. IIIT Bangalore and upGrad’s collaborated program of PG Diploma in Data Science is India’s first-ever PG Diploma to be recommended and validated by the National Association of Software and Services Companies (NASSCOM) and government-approved National Occupational Standards (NOS). upGrad received the ‘Best Education Brands’ award by Economic Times in 2018, Most Innovative Companies in India’ by Fast Company in 2017 and has made it to LinkedIn’s ‘Top 25 Startups’ two years in a row in 2018 and 2019, and in 1st position in 2020.

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