Edtech platform Oliveboard raises ₹23 cr led by IAN Fund

Mumbai: Oliveboard, an edtech platform focused on competitive exams, has raised pre-Series A funding of ₹23 crore led by Indian Angel Network (IAN) Fund with participation from Education Catalyst Fund (ECF) and Yukti Securities, the company said in a statement on Monday.

This funding will enable Oliveboard to expand its number of national-level courses and exams, and to add state-level categories. The Bengaluru-based startup will further focus on investing in technology for interactive data-driven products which will lead to customised learning at a more granular level for individuals, the statement said.

Founded by Abhishek Patil and V Satish Kumar, the platform focusses on the aspirational student base, provides access to affordable and high-quality coaching to graduates preparing for jobs in the government sector. Oliveboard’s adaptive platform uses a data-driven approach for intelligent learning and offers live classes, practice tests, live practice sessions, remedial material and other forms of interactive content to aspirants.

Oliveboard has over 8 million users spanning across 2,500 cities and towns in India, the statement claimed.

“There is no one-size-fits-all approach. We follow a personalized approach to learning that offers convenience and flexibility to aspirants preparing for government exams. Our key focus area is to provide data-driven personalized coaching to each learner based on their preparation levels for an exam. Given our success in the Banking & Insurance exam category, we are well-positioned to expand our offerings seamlessly into other newer and lesser served exam categories," said Abhishek Patil, co-founder of Oliveboard.

The edtech platform currently supports 50 government exams. In the coming years, Oliveboard is planning to add over 100 various national and state-level exams to its bouquet of offerings.

"The market size of the government job entrance exam preparation industry in India is estimated to be nearly INR 400 billion. Before March 2020, a large portion of this market was dominated by offline coaching institutes and the pandemic has been a catalyst in the adoption of online solutions. This market is bound to grow as the demand for test preparation has been stimulated by the increasing internet penetration in tier-2 and tier-3 cities in the country. We are delighted to see how EdTech startups like Oliveboard are combining their educational expertise with technology and helping thousands of aspirants in their preparation for government jobs," said Sudipta Gautam, managing partner, IAN Fund.