Geniebook bounces back from post-Covid dip to positive cash flow

For Zhizhong Neo, co-founder and CEO of Singapore-based edtech firm Geniebook, 2023 was a year of “navigating uncertainty.” The company laid off staff, and a shift to a hybrid online-offline model proved more complicated than expected.

But those tough decisions appear to have paid off.

According to audited financial statements reviewed by Tech in Asia, Geniebook’s revenue for 2023 slightly decreased, but so did spending. Ultimately, the company’s loss before taxes narrowed year on year.

According to Neo, things improved from that point on. He tells Tech in Asia that the company hit cash flow positive in Q4 last year, while calling Q1 2025 its “best quarter ever” – surpassing even the pandemic-era surge in online learning.

“Life or death”

Like many edtech firms, Geniebook grew considerably during the pandemic. After a profitable 2020, the company expanded to Vietnam – it is also present in Singapore and Indonesia – and almost doubled its revenue the year after.

However, Geniebook had to adapt as students went back to physical schools.

The firm’s learning platform initially focused on personalized education for primary and secondary school students and only operated online.

Students’ activity at Geniebook learning center / Photo credit: Geniebook

Last year, the startup began offering offline classes, which it fast-tracked with its acquisition of AfterSkool. Geniebook declined to comment further on the details of its deal with the offline learning center chain.

These locations expanded Geniebook’s reach to grade seven to 12 students, particularly in pre-university programs.

Moving to a hybrid model was harder than it looked, though.

In 2023, revenue dipped by 8% to about US$15.2 million. But Neo says the company had to slow down its push for top-line growth, considering that the company’s “life or death” was at stake at the time.

“We had to [scale back revenue growth],” Zhizhong says. “For example, in 2023, we wanted to scale the physical centers at a much faster speed than we did.”

See also: We took our online-first startup hybrid. It got complicated

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