Byju’s raises $540 mln from Naspers, CPPIB

Byju’s, the creator of a popular K-12 learning app, raised $540 million in its latest round of investment led by Naspers, a global Internet and entertainment group. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) also participated in the round.

With this round, Byju’s has been valued at $3.6 billion and has become  the fourth most valuable startup in the country after digital payments provider Paytm, cab-hailing service provider Ola and hotel aggregator Oyo.

The new round of funding will drive the Byju’s team to further innovate, explore and set new benchmarks for tech-enabled learning products, the company said in a statement on Monday. It has aggressive plans for international market expansion and making bold investments in technology that will help to further personalise learning for students.

“The edtech industry is undergoing massive shifts; students today want to learn through engaging and interactive methods. We are pioneering ‘better learning for tomorrow’ with technology as an enabler, and have been working towards making students active learners. It is only through active learning that we can prepare our youth for the jobs of tomorrow,” said Byju Raveendran, founder and chief executive, Byju’s.

Launched in 2015, Byju’s Learning App is the leader in offering personalised learning programs for school students in India. With 30 million students cumulatively learning from the app and over 2 million annual paid subscriptions, Byju’s has witnessed phenomenal growth. The learning app sees an engagement of an average 64 mins from students daily. The company has been growing at 100% for the last three years, and is on target to triple it’s revenue to Rs 1400 crores this year.

“While near-term profitability is important for us, as a company our main focus continues to be on long-term sustainable growth,” said Raveendran.

Cape Town, South Africa-headquartered Naspers typically partners with high-potential companies that are tackling big societal needs like education, which represents a significant sector ripe for disruption across the globe.

“With the largest school-age population in the world and a growing middle-class with the willingness to commit significant resources towards quality education for their children, BYJU’S is perfectly positioned to provide an effective supplemental education solution for students across India. We partnered with BYJU’S because we believe the company’s success in India will translate across borders in any country where students are looking for an innovative and engaging form of education beyond the classroom,” said Russell Dreisenstock, Head of International Investments, Naspers Ventures.

So far, Byju’s has raised funds from Naspers, CPPIB,  General Atlantic, Chan-Zuckerberg Initiative, Tencent, Sequoia Capital, Sofina, Verlinvest, IFC, Aarin Capital, Times Internet and Lightspeed Venture Partners.