BENGALURU: Edtech unicorn Byju's has acquired online school coding startup WhiteHat Jr. for $300 million in an all-cash deal.
An 18-month-old startup, WhiteHat Jr.'s valuation has more than doubled with this deal.
Founded in November 2018, WhiteHat Jr. helps kids aged 6 to 14 years build commercially-ready games, animations and apps online using the fundamentals of coding
Additionally, Byju's will also make significant investments in WhiteHat Jr’s technology platform while expanding the teacher base to cater to demand from new markets.
WhiteHat Jr. Founder Karan Bajaj will continue to lead the business in India and the US. WhiteHat Jr. has earned record revenues in just 18 months of launch.
WhiteHat Jr. had recently announced their plans to expand in other global markets like Canada, UK, Australia and New Zealand (ANZ) after a stellar growth in the US for its one-to-one online coding classes. After launching their courses in the US since February this year, the company is growing at 160% MoM in the country.
"We started WhiteHat Jr. to make kids creators instead of consumers of technology. Technology is at the centre of every human interaction today and we had set out to create a coding curriculum that was being delivered live and connected students and teachers like never before. Integration with a visionary company such as Byju's will help take this idea to new heights and help unleash the remarkable creative potential of kids on a global scale," Karan Bajaj, Founder, WhiteHat Jr said.
Byju's, a $10-billion edtech startup, had recently raised funds from US venture capitalist, Bond Capital, hinting at further expansion and investment plans. The edtech platform has over 57 million registered students, more than 3.5 million paid subscribers and annual renewal rates as high as 85%.
Byju's has also doubled its revenue from Rs 1430 crore to Rs 2800 crore in FY 19-20. The Mergers and Acquisitions in edtech space has become quite prevalent in the COVID pandemic as online education demand is soaring.
"WhiteHat Jr is the leader in the live online coding space. Karan has proven his mettle as an exceptional founder and the credit goes to him and his team for creating coding programs that are loved by kids. Under his leadership the company has achieved phenomenal growth in India and the US in a short span of time," said Byju Raveendran, Founder and CEO, Byju's.