In Another Edtech Funding, Lead School Raises $28 million in Series C Round The series C funding round is lead by WestBridge Capital along with participation from existing investor Elevar Equity, a major stakeholder and so far the sole investor in the company
By Shipra Singh
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Education technology (Edtech) company Lead School has raised USD28 million in series C funding round lead by WestBridge Capital.
Existing investor Elevar Equity, a major stakeholder and so far the sole investor in the company, also participated in the round.
Founded in 2012 by Smita Deorah and Sumeet Yashpal Mehta, Lead School combines technology, curriculum and pedagogy into an integrated system (IS) of teaching and learning to improving student learning and teacher performance in schools. Before building the IS, the co-founders ran affordable schools, teaching middle school students. They rolled out the IS in 2017 with the mission to make excellent schools accessible and affordable to every child.
Mehta, CEO, Lead School said that the company partners with affordable private schools to transform them into centres of excellent learning through their Integrated System.
"We aim to democratize excellent learning by transforming schools in Tier 2-3-4 towns where the majority of India lives. Our firm belief is that every child, irrespective of their economic background or location of birth, should have access to an excellent education."
The Mumbai-based company has partnered with over 800 schools, serving about 3 lakh students in more than 300 cities, including tier 2, tier 3 and tier 4 cities along with the metros, in 15 states.
The edtech company said that it will utilise the fresh capital to accelerate development and rollout of new product offerings, increase its school network in Tier 2-3 cities and hire talent across domains. "The new round of funding will help us bring more innovation and reach more students and schools," said Mehta.
Covid-19 Watershed Moment for Edtech
Edtech startups have clocked massive growth in the last five months owing to Covid-19 induced lockdowns across the country. As the online learning platforms such as Lead fulfill the rising demand for e-learning, the sector has witnessed rising investor's interest.
Over the last 2-3 months, leading edtech startups such as Byju's, which has been in fund raising spree since the start of the year, and Vedantu have raised capital from global investors.
Also Read: Vedantu Becomes Second Most Valued Edtech Startup After Raising $100 mn in Series D Round
Since the onset of the Covid-19 lockdown, Vedantu reported over 220 per cent growth and Adda247 said it has registered a revenue growth of five times in its vernacular business. Earlier in August, Byju's acquired WhiteHat Jr.—an online coding startup for kids—in a USD300 million all-cash transaction to continue to mark its dominance in the sector.
Also Read: Byju's Acquires WhiteHat Jr For $300 Mn
Lead said during this pandemic their IS has enabled schools to deliver an uninterrupted learning experience for all students.
"In the new world order, the lockdown ensuing the pandemic has given a massive boost to online education. In the last few months, the edtech sector has evolved rapidly, changing the trajectory of the Indian education system multifold," said Sandeep Singhal, Managing Director, WestBridge Capital.
"We see great potential in LEAD School, given their innovative and focused approach in ensuring accessible, quality school-level education for all. As a firm, we believe in investing in ventures that have a large scale impact and are convinced LEAD School will create a strong positive impact on the educational outcomes of millions of young minds."
