Physics Wallah raises $100 million; becomes India's 101st unicorn
Noida-based ed-tech start-up Physics Wallah has joined the coveted unicorn club in India. The firm has raised $100 million at a valuation of $1.1 billion, as part of a Series A funding round from GSV Ventures and WestBridge Capital. The country's 101st unicorn will use the funds for branding, expanding the business, introducing more courses, and opening more offline learning centers.
Why does this story matter?
- Due to a drop in demand for technology-based education solutions, the ed-tech sector in India is experiencing a slowdown. As a result, several ed-tech firms are laying off employees.
- However, Physics Wallah is an exception. Its revenue grew nine times in 2021-2022 compared to 2020-2021.
- It is India's second company to join the unicorn club since April and has been profitable since its inception.
The start-up has nearly 7 million subscribers on YouTube
Physics Wallah has 1,900 employees, including 100 tech experts and 500 teachers. There are 200 associate professors to answer student queries, while another 200 professionals create exam questions and term papers. The start-up has over five million Google Play Store downloads and 6.9 million YouTube subscribers. Over 10,000 students enrolled with it have cracked competitive exams like JEE and NEET in 2020 and 2021.
Educational content in 9 vernacular languages will be offered
Physics Wallah wants to produce educational content in nine vernacular languages, including Bengali, Tamil, Gujarati, Kannada, and Odia. It will open 20 offline coaching centers called 'Pathshala' across India, and wants to reach 250 million students by 2025. These will be in addition to 20 centers across 18 cities that are currently operational. For the 2022-23 session, more than 10,000 students got themselves enrolled.
'Unicorn status will aid in implementing student-friendly initiatives'
Commenting on how the raised funds will be spent, the founder and CEO of Physics Wallah, Alakh Pandey said, "We are delighted to join the unicorn bandwagon with this latest funding." "This latest development will help us further our vision and implement new initiatives to augment the learning journeys of students, thereby enabling them to reach new heights in their careers."
