Edtech platform upGrad has become the latest entrant to the coveted unicorn club after raising a funding of $185 million. After the latest fundraising, it is valued at $1.2 billion, the company said. Temasek, International Finance Corporation, a sister organisation of the World Bank and member of the World Bank Group, and IIFL participated in the round. The platform is focussed on its path to being in the top three to five companies globally, Ronnie Screwvala, chairperson and co-founder, upGrad, said. The edtech platform aims to serve the one billion workforce across the age group of 18 to 60 years, he added.
“We are pleased with the investor interest ever since we opened up for a fundraise, and had our maiden raise from Temasek, followed by IFC and IIFL in the last 60 days. We will announce further updates on M&As, and unlocking value as they unfold. Yes, the last value was at $1.2 billion, but as I keep saying, we are not a fan of the tag name unicorn – for us, it is only a means to a much larger goal,” Screwvala added.
However, upGrad continues to be led by promoters as the founder group still owns more than 70% stake in the company. The platform, co-founded by Ronnie Screwvala along with Mayank Kumar and Phalgun Kompalli, has become the third edtech unicorn in India. It claimed to impact over one million total registered learners in more than 50 countries. Other major players in the segment such as Byju’s, Unacademy have also raised fresh capital this year as edtech sector continues to grow.
upGrad has ventured into the short duration upskilling and reskilling segment recently with the acquisition of KnowledgeHut, soon after it earmarked $250 million for mergers and acquisitions to drive non-linear growth.
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