Mumbai-based education technology company upGrad has reportedly secured USD 120 million from Temasek Holdings Limited, a Singaporean investment company, during its first external funding round. If sources are to be believed, upGrad will now be worth USD 675 million in terms of valuation and will focus on acquiring a unicorn status in the subsequent months.
The fresh funds are likely to be used in conducting various business-centric activities such as mergers and acquisitions as well as towards reinforcing its market presence in the U.S., U.K., Asia-Pacific, and the Middle East. Sources confirmed that upGrad is also looking to invest in the post-secondary education and lifelong learning segments.
For the record, upGrad was founded in 2015 by Ronnie Screwvala, Phalgun Kompalli, Mayank Kumar, and Ravijot Chugh. It specializes in providing online courses that are industry-relevant and allow people to enhance their skillsets to be on par with the competitive world.
upGrad has been internally funded until recently, with Founder and Executive Chairman Ronnie Screwvala investing over USD 25 million in the company, reports stated.
In this context, Screwvala stated that upGrad is looking for mergers and acquisition opportunities in the lifelong learning segment. Moreover, the company intends to go public to raise additional funding as well as expand its service reach, he added.
Earlier in April, upGrad had announced that it generates around USD 156 million revenue annually, with over 85% of the people registered having completed the courses. Apparently, this percentage is relatively higher than those of U.S.-based edtech firms.
If market speculations are right, the Indian edtech space has been witnessing significant expansion with the COVID-19 outbreak acting as an inflection point. Several companies operating in this business sphere have managed to secure fresh investments recently.
Speaking of which, upGrad faces competition from companies such as Vendatu, Unacademy, and BYJU’s in the Indian edtech market.
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