Virendra Pandit
New Delhi: In the biggest-ever stock-and-cash deal in the world’s education technology sector, decacorn Byju’s has closed a mega- strategic partnership deal to acquire competitive examination preparation company Aakash Educational Services Ltd (AESL) for nearly $1 billion (Rs.7333 crore).
“I am happy to have Aakash Educational Services Limited (AESL), a market leader and the most trusted name in the test-prep services, on board with us,” said Byju Raveendran, Founder, and CEO, Byju’s, according to media reports on Monday.
“Our complementary strengths will enable us to build capabilities, create engaging and personalized learning programs. The future of learning is hybrid and this union will bring together the best of offline and online learning, as we combine our expertise to create impactful experiences for students.”
Raveendran said the pandemic has brought the importance of the blended format of learning to the forefront. This partnership brings together two of the largest education brands in India, combining Aakash’s pedagogy expertise in the test-prep segment with Byju’s content and tech capabilities. After the integration, Byju’s will make further investments to accelerate Aakash’s growth.
With over 33 years of experience, Aakash said it has built a highly effective learning ecosystem that has helped millions of young aspirants get into the country’s best institutions. In 2019, AESL partnered with private equity firm Blackstone to create India’s largest digitally-enabled, omnichannel test preparation company.
Ernst and Young and Phoenix Advisors were the exclusive financial advisors for Byju’s and AESL, respectively, on this transaction.
With over 215 centers, Aakash provides test preparatory services to students preparing for medical and engineering entrance exams, school/board exams, KVPY, NTSE, Olympiads, etc.
Launched in 2015, Byju’s is the leader in offering personalized learning programs for school students in India. With over 80 million students cumulatively learning from the app, 5.5 million annual paid subscriptions, and an annual renewal rate of 86 percent, the app creates personalized learning programs for individual students based on their proficiency levels and capabilities which help them learn at their own pace and style.
In just 6 months during the lockdown, Byju’s has added 45 million new students to its platform.