Edtech Highlights — October

• In October, Edtech companies raised $1.76bn (1.7x more than in September). There is no longer any doubt that the global edtech market is expanding annually: as of October 2021, YTD raises already exceed all of 2020.
• This month, American edtech startups account for more than half of the amount raised in Edtech around the world. Major US edtech companies raised funds in October, including BetterUp, Outschool, and Amplify Education. India continues on the same path with Byju’s series F and Teachmint’s major series B.

Notable European Rounds

• October has been a busy month for Educapital. Two portfolio companies raised funds (360Learning and Livementor) and we invested in three new companies (O’clock, Simundia and Wecandoo). Three of these raises are part of the top 5 largest European edtech rounds this month.
• With a $200m Series C led by Sumeru and Softbank Vision Fund 2, 360Learning’s round was the largest French edtech raise ever. This round will help them accelerate strongly in Europe and the US, continue recruiting talented and motivated people, grow the team to 500+ people, and invest in strategic M&A.

M&A Deals

• Fiverr acquired Creative Live, a learning platform to take courses on photography, video, design, and business. This new acquisition is part of Fiverr’s strategy to be more than a marketplace, and support the freelance community by expanding its range of services and offer classes.
• Labster, our portfolio company — the world’s leading platform for virtual labs and interactive science — acquired UbiSim, a VR training platform for nursing. This acquisition is fully aligned with Labster’s mission to improve access to high quality education. Labster will now have an important role in the future of nursing education, providing real-world nursing scenarios as well as immersive VR training simulations to nursing students.
• Riid, a South Korean app to increase TOEIC score using AI, acquired Langoo, a Japanese gamified app to learn English. Riid explained that the purpose of this operation is to expand its footprint in Japan, one of the largest and promising education markets. It is the first step before tackling the global market.

A Major IPO

The platform includes 44 million learners which can access 183,000 courses in 75 languages. Its IPO is an important milestone for the Edtech industry and is the 5th IPO of the year for the sector alongside other iconic edtech companies such as Duolingo and Coursera.

October Infographic