Indian edtech firm upGrad closes $210m round

Indian edtech unicorn upGrad has secured US$210 million from investors such as ETS Global, Temasek, and the International Finance Corporation.

The startup’s founding team also invested US$12.5 million in the round to maintain their more than 50% share of the company.

(From left) upGrad co-founders Phalgun Kompalli, Mayank Kumar, and Ronnie Screwvala / Photo credit: upGrad

Founded in 2015 by Ronnie Screwvala, Mayank Kumar, Phalgun Kompalli, and Ravijot Chugh, upGrad aims to become a platform for lifelong learning that caters to people of different age groups – from college learners to working professionals.

The company said it has a course completion rate of 80%, while 40% of its revenue comes from returning students and referral programs.

The startup added that it expects to log US$400 million to US$500 million in gross revenue during the fiscal year 2023. It currently has over 3 million users and about 300 university partners across over 100 countries worldwide.

With the fresh capital, the edtech major looks to grow its staff count from 4,800 to 7,600 people in the next three months, aiming to have a total teaching team of 170 full-time lecturers, 1,600 teachers, and over 5,000 contract coaches and mentors.

The startup joined the unicorn club in August last year after raising a US$185 million funding round. The latest round follows a report earlier this year that upGrad was eyeing a new fundraise that would push its valuation to as high as US$3 billion.

Other investors in this round include:

• Bodhi Tree
• Artian Investments
• IIFL Group
• Kaizen Management Advisors
• The family office behind Bharti Airtel
• The family office of Narotam Sekhsaria

See also: Indian edtech yet to open up to tech for the disabled