Unacademy, once counted among India’s most valuable edtech startups, has been acquired by rival upGrad at a valuation just north of $200 million. At its peak, the company was valued at $3.44 billion.
“We raised at a peak, but sold at a fraction of that,” Unacademy co-founder and CEO Gaurav Munjal said in a social media post.
Samay Raina roasts Gaurav Munjal
The huge gap between Unacademy’s peak valuation and its eventual acquisition led to a lighthearted dig from comedian Samay Raina.
On Tuesday, Samay Raina shared an Instagram picture that shows him with Gaurav Munjal and wrote: “Congratulations to my friend Gaurav Munjal for selling his company Unacademy for just $200 million dollars when he could have sold it earlier at $3.4 billion dollars.”
Munjal took the jibe sportingly. Responding to the picture on X, he wrote: “Who needs enemies when you have such friends.” He added a smiley face emoji at the end.
UpGrad acquires Unacademy
UpGrad has completed the acquisition of Unacademy for just over USD 200 million, about 94 per cent off its 2021 peak valuation, with co-founder and CEO Gaurav Munjal acknowledging the steep markdown in a post on LinkedIn.
{{/usCountry}}UpGrad has completed the acquisition of Unacademy for just over USD 200 million, about 94 per cent off its 2021 peak valuation, with co-founder and CEO Gaurav Munjal acknowledging the steep markdown in a post on LinkedIn.
{{/usCountry}}Munjal wrote that the company became a unicorn (a privately held firm valued at more than USD 1 billion) six years ago. Unacademy had raised capital at its peak valuation but was ultimately sold for a fraction of that amount.
"Six years ago today, Unacademy became a unicorn. Today, Unacademy has closed its acquisition by UpGrad for just over USD 200 million. We raised at a peak, but sold at a fraction of that. I'm not going to dress these facts up," Munjal wrote on LinkedIn.
While Munjal did not quantify the exact markdown in his post, it may be recalled that back in 2021, Unacademy had raised USD 440 million (about ₹3,270.8 crore at that time) in funding from a clutch of investors including Temasek, General Atlantic, and Softbank Vision Fund, valuing the edtech major at USD 3.44 billion.
The acquisition price of just over USD 200 million is, therefore, about 94 per cent lower than Unacademy's peak valuation.
Unacademy, Munjal said, sought to democratise education and helped establish a model for online learning in India.
"...I am proud of what this team did between those two numbers," he said, candidly acknowledging the steep markdown.
(With inputs from PTI)