Byju’s said to hit $10.5b in valuation

Indian edtech startup Byju’s has reached a valuation of US$10.5 billion to become the second-most valued startup in the country, surpassing embattled budget hotel chain Oyo, Bloomberg reported, citing a source.

Byju’s announced Friday that it had secured new funding from US investor Bond Capital. While the funding amount was undisclosed, a source told Livemint that it was around US$100 million.

Tech in Asia has reached out to Byju’s to learn more.

Byju Raveendran, the founder & CEO of Byju’s.

The startup’s latest funding comes after it secured US$200 million from Tiger Global in January this year. It was also said to have raised another US$200 million from General Atlantic, boosting its valuation to US$8.2 billion.

The fresh funds from Bond Capital put Byju’s in India’s top three highest-valued startups. Fintech leader Paytm takes the no. 1 spot, with a valuation of US$16 billion, while Oyo rounds off the list with a US$10 billion valuation.

With a portfolio that includes Airbnb, Facebook, JD.com, Spotify, and Uber, among others, Bond’s investment in Byju’s marks its first in an Indian startup.

In the coming months, Byju’s is likely to raise more capital, according to the Livemint report. But in the meantime, it looks like it’s seeking to further expand its reach in smaller cities in India by buying edtech startup Doubtnut. According to a report by TechCrunch, the deal would value the smaller player at US$125 million to US$150 million.

Early this year, Doubtnut said it had over 13 million monthly active users across its website, app, YouTube channel, and WhatsApp platforms. It most recently raised US$15 million in a round led by Tencent.

Byju’s now serves over 57 million registered students and more than 3.5 million paid subscribers, with about US$370 million in revenue, according to a statement.

Having attracted 6 million new students in March and another 7.5 million in April, the company is looking to hire at least 4,000 employees in six months.