OYO and Zomato Founders Boost Unacademy’s Valuation to $3.4 Billion

Unacademy, an online learning platform, has surged to a valuation of $3.44 billion following its latest fundraising round, securing investments totaling $440 million. Over the past 18 months, the valuation of the Unacademy Group has skyrocketed nearly tenfold, according to reports from the company.

The Series H funding round witnessed participation from Aroa Ventures, the family office of Ritesh Agarwal, the founder of hotel chain OYO, and Deepinder Goyal, co-founder and CEO of Zomato. Additionally, some angel investors from Unacademy have divested their stakes in this round.

Furthermore, existing investors such as General Atlantic, Tiger Global, and Softbank Vision Fund have injected additional capital. This marks the second investment by Tiger Global and General Atlantic, both of which augmented their positions in Unacademy in January of this year.

Unacademy’s Growth Trajectory

Founded six years ago by Gaurav Munjal, Hemesh Singh, and Roman Saini, Unacademy has amassed a vast network comprising over 50,000 registered educators and more than 62 million learners across 5,000 cities, offering courses in 14 Indian languages.

Unacademy has carved a niche in aiding students preparing for competitive exams and has reaped substantial benefits from the surge in online learning. Unlike Byju’s, which relies on pre-recorded content, and Vedantu, known for live tutoring, Unacademy distinguishes itself through its diverse offerings.

Booming Edtech Landscape in India

India’s edtech industry, which boasted an annual revenue pool of $700 million as of March 2020, witnessed a twofold increase in business over the subsequent year, propelled by the pandemic, as per data from Goldman Sachs. The global investment bank anticipates the entire edtech sector to reach a valuation of $30 billion by March 2024, fueled by robust spending on education by Indian households, second only to China.

Unacademy’s Strategic Acquisitions

In line with the burgeoning edtech landscape, Unacademy has been actively acquiring complementary startups. Recently, the platform announced its acquisition of game streaming platform Rheo TV, facilitating professional game streamers in livestreaming their gameplay and monetizing their content.

Moreover, in February, Unacademy acquired TapChief, a professional networking and “future-of-work” platform, valued at ₹100 crore. These strategic acquisitions underscore Unacademy’s commitment to expanding its offerings and solidifying its position in the evolving edtech ecosystem.