Byju’s raises funding from BOND, valuation rises to $10.5 bn

New Delhi/Bengaluru: Online learning startup Byju’s (Think & Learn Pvt. Ltd) has raised a fresh round of funding from Bond, a global technology investment firm co-founded by Mary Meeker, at a valuation of $10.5 billion.

The funding amount was not disclosed.

The latest funding comes after Tiger Global had invested $200 million in Byju's in January, valuing the ed-tech platform then at around $8 billion.

The new funding makes Byju’s the second most valued startup in India, overtaking hospitality startup Oyo, which was last valued at $10 billion.

Paytm was valued at $16 billion late last year when it raised its $1 billion Series G round.

The fresh fundraise from Bond comes at a time when the edtech startup has been stepping-up hiring. Mint reported on Thursday that Byju's is set to hire around 4,000 employees in the next six months as demand for its online courses skyrocketed since the lockdown in March.

This is the first time Bond has backed an Indian startup. Mary Meeker is an American venture capitalist and former Wall Street securities analyst who is well-known for her global Internet Trends report.

In response to schools being shut due to the covid-19 crisis and lockdowns, Byju’s had made content on its learning app free for all students. It has also introduced live classes to further student engagement.

This crisis has brought online learning to the forefront and has helped parents, teachers and students alike to experience and understand the value of it, Byju Raveendran, founder and CEO said. “We have the opportunity to positively influence how teachers teach, students learn and school’s function. The ‘Classrooms of Tomorrow’ will have technology at the core, empowering students to cross over from passive to active learning. The result will be a combination of the best of both online and offline educational offerings.”

Byju’s saw sharp growth in the last year and now has over 57 million registered students, more than 3.5 million paid subscribers and annual renewal rates as high as 85%. Byju’s doubled its revenue from ₹1430 crore to ₹2800 crore in FY 19-20.

“Endorsed by millions of students, Byju's has emerged as a clear leader in education technology,” said Mary Meeker, General Partner at BOND.

The most valued edtech start-up in India currently offers learning content that caters to school students across different age groups, including kindergarten to higher secondary levels. Byju’s also offers students a variety of programmes, including online coaching for competitive exams such as the Common Aptitude Test and the Indian Administrative Services.