Sequoia India’s Surge backs $14.3m series A round of Vietnamese edtech firm

Virtual Internships, a youth work-program service based out of England and Vietnam, has raised US$14.3 million in a series A round led by Hambro Perks, with Sequoia India & Southeast Asia’s Surge and STIC Investments also participating.

Virtual Internships founders Ed Holroyd Pearce (left) and Daniel Nivern / Photo credit: Virtual Internships

The firm offers access to digital internships for individuals pursuing higher education across 100 countries. It also trains students before and during their work experiences.

The company says that regardless of location, background, major, and career field, it will match students to internship opportunities at startups and blue-chip firms within one month. It also estimates that a new host company joins its network every 7.5 minutes.

With its programs that last one to four months, Virtual Internships said that 70% of matched interns have directly worked with founders or C-level executives at their host companies. It added that around 25% of matched interns are offered to extend their work.

Founded in 2018 by Daniel Nivern and Ed Holroyd Pearce, Virtual Internships has employees across 25 countries. The firm took part in the fifth cohort of Sequoia’s Surge accelerator program.

The global edtech market is set to reach US$319.7 billion in value by 2029 at a compound annual growth rate of 17.8%.

See also: Recession Run: Sequoia’s $850m plan during a downturn

Other investors in the round include:

• Arsenal Growth
• Kaplan
• Ascend Vietnam Ventures