Tencent-backed Byju’s secures $200m from Tiger Global

Indian edtech company Think and Learn, the owner and operator of learning app Byju’s, has received US$200 million from New York-based investment firm Tiger Global Management.

Byju Raveendran, the founder & CEO of Byju’s /Photo credit: Byju’s

According to the Economic Times, Byju’s confirmed the deal but did not disclose any specifics. The transaction will value the Bengalaru-based company at roughly US$8 billion, according to the report.

Citing two sources familiar with the matter, the report said that Tiger Global’s investment comes after months of negotiations between the investment firm and Byju’s. The people also said that secondary transactions, estimated at around US$100 million to US$200 million, are anticipated as well, providing exits to some of the edtech startup’s early backers.

Launched in 2015, Byju’s creates learning programs for K-12 students as well as for competitive exams. Since then, the company claims to now have over 40 million registered users on its platform and have turned profitable in June 2018 after achieving US$14.3 million in monthly revenue.

See also: How a part-time math tutor created the world’s most valuable edtech company

In July 2019, Byju’s raised US$150 million in a funding round led by sovereign wealth fund Qatar Investment Authority to fuel its global expansion plans. Edtech investor Owl Ventures also participated in the round, marking the two firms’ first investment in an Indian startup.

Four months prior, the company also raised roughly US$11.4 million from private equity firm General Atlantic and Tencent, pushing its valuation to about US$4 billion. Other notable backers of Byju’s are Naspers, the Chan-Zuckerberg Initiative, Sequoia Capital, and Lightspeed Venture Partners, among others.

General Atlantic also recently invested in another edtech startup in Asia, co-leading a US$150 million series C round for Jakarta-based Ruangguru, alongside GGV Capital. Ruangguru plans to use the funds to expand its product range across Indonesia and Vietnam.