India has emerged as one of the leading edtech markets with the likes of Byju’s, Unacademy and Vedantu reaching multibillion dollar valuations in just a few years. Another startup-Eruditus, has proved itself to be a worthy competitor to all these companies, and has raised $113 million in a round backed by the Chan Facebook initiative.
The amount was raised in a Series D funding round, which saw participation from existing investors Sequoia India and Ved Capital, and was co led by Leeds Illuminate and Prosus Ventures. This round also brings the total capital raised for the startup till date to $160 million, and raises the valuation of the company to a staggering $700 million, making it one of the most valuable ed tech startups not just in India but the entire world.
ET reports that $20 million of this investment is a secondary cash out, while $93 million has been infused in the company.
Eruditus says that it will use the capital to expand in new markets and partner with more universities, in its attempt to increase its offerings. Moreover, it also plans to invest in more ‘career ready’ courses.
The company boasts a presence in about 80 nations throughout the world, offering more than 100 executive-level courses to students. It also has offices in six countries, and employs over 650 people. With its existing infrastructure, it has managed to form partnerships with 30 top-tier universities including MIT, Harvard, Columbia, Cambridge, INSEAD, Wharton, UC Berkeley, IIT, IIM, and NUS and provides courses to student which can range anywhere from $5,000 to $40,000.
This is Chan Zuckerberg’s second investment in India till date, and it seems like the initiative has got a taste for India’s ed tech market. Its first investment-Byju’s is also an edtech platform, and has already established itself as the most valuable startup in the industry around the world. However, CZI made a partial exit from the startup earlier this year.
“Eruditus serves as a critical innovation partner for top universities as they expand online course offerings in response to workforce needs and market demand,” said Vivian Wu, Managing Partner, Ventures, Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, in a statement. “We’re excited to support the growing partnerships between U.S. universities and those in India, China and Latin America that are making truly high-quality education accessible to a broad and diverse range of students.”
