Update on Dec 17: Education startup Byju’s has raised $540 million in a round led by Naspers, with participation from Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), the company confirmed in a statement. Last week, multiple publications reported that the company had raised $400 million from Naspers, CPPIB, as well as General Atlantic. The company will expand internationally and invest in technology to personalize education. Byju’s is looking to launch an international product which 6 months. and is also working on a K-3 product for India.

Byju’s metrics

  • Byju’s claims to have registered 30 million users
  • 2 million annual paid subscriptions
  • Users in over 1700 cities in India
  • An average engagement time of 64 minutes daily
  • Claims to have grown 100% in the last 3 years
  • Claims to be on target to triple revenue to Rs 1400 crore this year

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Earlier on Dec 12: Online education and tutoring company Byju’s, run by Think and Learn Pvt Ltd, has raised $400 million in a fresh investment round from Naspers Ventures, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, and General Atlantic, reports Mint. The publication cites RoC filings accessed via Paper.vc.

The report cites an anonymous source as saying that the company is now valued at nearly $4 billion, which would make it the 4th most valuable startup in India after Paytm, Ola Cabs, and Oyo Rooms.

Previous funding

Byju’s has raised $666.6 million in funding to date, according to CrunchBase.

  • July 2017: Undisclosed sum (~35 million) from Chinese internet conglomerate Tencent
  • March 2017: Undisclosed amount (~30 million) from Belgian investment firm Verlinvest
  • December 2016: Close to $15 million from International Finance Corporation (World Bank)
  • September 2016: $50 million round led by the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative
  • March 2016: $75 million from Sequoia Capital and Sofina in Series D round
  • September 2013: Series B round of $25 million from Sequoia Capital
  • November 2011: Series A round of $9 million from Aarin Capital

Competition

  • Embibe: In April, Reliance Industries acquired a 72.6% stake in AI-based education startup Embibe for $180 million. Embibe had raised $4 million in 2014.
  • Shine Learning: HT Media’s e-learning platform ‘Shine Learning’, a sister website to jobs portal Shine.com, has been around for almost a year now.
  • Unacademy has raised $38.5 million in investment to date, per CrunchBase. It last raised $21 million in July. 
  • MeritNation: In November, InfoEdge increased its stake in MeritNation’s owning company Applect Learning Systems to 65.6%.

Edit: The story has been updated with a confirmation through a company statement