Byju's acquires Coding StartUp WhiteHat Jr in 300 million dollar all cash deal

Edtech unicorn Byju’s announced on Wednesday that it has acquired WhiteHat Jr. WhiteHat Jr is a Mumbai-based edtech startup that is popular for its online coding classes. The deal is reportedly for $300 million. Earlier this week, Byju's also secured an investment of $400 million from DST Global. So, all in together, this would benefit Byju's as it will accelerate its US expansion plans.

Byju’s other acquisitions include Math Adventures, TutorVista, Vidyarth and Osmo. A $300 million all-cash deal would make this the edtech company’s biggest acquisition to date.

About WhiteHat Jr

WhiteHat offers one-on-one classes with an expert and also offers classes to kids ages 6-14. It offers four levels of courses – Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced and Professional – for students in grades 1-9. The startup claims to have a revenue run rate of $150 million.

The 2018-StartUp has raised $11 million in funding so far from the Omidyar Network and Nexus Venture Partners and Owl Ventures. These investors may now get a strong exit.

Talking about the deal and the company, Founder Karan Bajaj said,

“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. It connected students and teachers like never before. So, integration with a visionary company such as BYJU’S will help take this idea to new heights. It will help unleash the remarkable creative potential of kids on a global scale.”

About the deal

Byju’s said that it would be making “significant investments” into WhiteHat Jr’s tech platform, product innovation as well as expanding its teacher base to cater to demand from new markets. WhiteHat Jr’s founder Karan Bajaj will continue to lead the platform.

Commenting on the deal, Byju’s co-founder and CEO Byju Raveendran said:

“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.”

This deal comes after WhiteHat announced plans to expand into global markets. they company had grown over 100% month-on-month in the US this year since February. Byju's also stated that the New Educational Policy (NEP) pushes coding from an earlier age; thus the deal benefits them.

About Byju's Funding

Till now, Byju’s has received nearly $1.5 billion in funding. Its investors include BOND Capital, General Atlantic, Tiger Global, Tencent, Prosus & Naspers, Qatar Investment Authority, Sequoia Capital etc. Reports also state that the company is looking at more funding this year. Late-stage VC fund of Yuri Milner, DST Global is in talks with Byju's to invest around $400 million. This funding round, reports said, values Byju’s at $10-10.5 billion. This would make it the second most valued unicorn in India, pushing ahead of OYO and just behind Paytm.

Byju’s, launched in 2015, said that it has over 64 million students learning from the app, and 4.2 million paid subscribers with an 85% renewal rate. As the lockdown spurred online learning, Byju’s said that it has had over 15 million new students on the platform, and did Rs 500 crore revenue in July.