Edtech firm upGrad said on Monday it has raised $120 million (Rs 898 crore) from Singapore state investor Temasek in its first external funding.
The company, which has collaborations with global universities, said it intends to use the funds to pursue merger and acquisitions, widen its reach in international markets and expand its graduate and post-graduate degree portfolio in India.
upGrad expects to achieve $2 billion revenue by 2026, it said in a statement.
“This capital will further fuel our commitment towards global expansion as well as deeper India penetration, as we march forward with our goal of making India the teaching capital of the world,” Ronnie Screwvala, Mayank Kumar and Phalgun Kompalli, cofounders of upGrad, said.
The edtech sector has been attracting investor attention after the COVID-19 pandemic sparked a surge in demand for online learning platforms and solutions.
Earlier in the month, Matrix Partners India and 021 Capital, the venture capital firm backed by Flipkart co-founder Binny Bansal, made an early-stage investment in edtech startup Createjoy Technologies.
In March, Bengaluru-based Think & Learn, the company that owns and operates edtech platform Byju’s, raised nearly $460 million from an investor consortium led by MC Global Edtech Investment Holdings.
In January, upGrad said it would raise around $45 million from the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation.
Founded in 2015, the online tutor platform has over one million total registered learners in more than 50 countries globally.
Temasek has a net portfolio value of $214 billion as of 31 March 2020.
Credit Suisse acted as its financial advisor, while Rajaram Legal acted as legal advisor.