The Ronnie Screwvala-led UpGrad has completed its acquisition of Unacademy for "just over $200 million," cofounder and chief executive Gaurav Munjal said on Tuesday, marking the close of a major consolidation in India’s edtech sector. The final value was more than 90% below test-prep company Unacademy’s peak valuation.
Munjal noted that Unacademy became a unicorn six years before the deal closed. “We raised at a peak, but sold at a fraction of that. I’m not going to dress these facts up.”
The acquisition is a 100% share-swap transaction under which Unacademy’s investors will receive UpGrad shares. ET first reported on May 4 that the transaction was in its final stages at an envisaged value of Rs 2,055 crore.
On July 28, ET reported that that the final value had been fixed at Rs 1,955 crore and that investors would receive one seat on UpGrad’s board.
Munjal said Unacademy has a topline of around Rs 400 crore, with most businesses profitable or close to profitability, and Rs 900 crore in the bank. The cash balance amounts to nearly half the transaction value. He said the company was under no pressure to sell and could have continued independently, but chose the merger as a better path for its ecosystem and shareholders.
