Blackstone-Backed Simplilearn Acquires US-Based Fullstack Academy

Edtech startup Simplilearn has acquired US-based bootcamp edtech startup Fullstack Academy in an all-cash deal. The startup did not share the financial details of the deal. 

Reportedly, the acquisition will help Simplilearn drive revenue growth up to $200 Mn by the financial year 2024.

The development comes a week after Simplilearn secured $45 Mn in a funding round led by GSV Ventures. Clal Insurance and ADQ’s venture platform DisruptAD also participated in the funding round. 

Set up in 2010 by Krishna Kumar, Simplilearn offers upskilling courses to students and working professionals. Some of the courses offered by the startup include cyber security, cloud computing, project management and data science, among others. 

Simplilearn also offers upskilling courses in partnership with academic institutions and international organisations such as IBM, Microsoft, Amazon, Meta, and KPMG, among others. 

“Through Fullstack Academy’s wide-spread footprint in the US and its strong partnerships with top universities, we are confident that this collaboration will enable us to accelerate our global expansion plans,” said Krishna Kumar, founder and CEO of Simplilearn.

The startup counts Fullstack Academy as its second acquisition after buying Market Motive in 2015. It also claims to have grown by 60% since the last year (2021).

Founded in 2013 by former Yahoo executives David Yang and Nimit Maru, Fullstack Academy offers coding, cybersecurity, data analytics, and product management bootcamps in the US. It claims to have partnered with 20 universities and industry partners. 

Fullstack asserts that it has a headcount of more than 300 employees in the US and is aiming to clock a revenue over $30 Mn this year.

“Simplilearn is a leading online digital bootcamp. I look forward to leveraging our shared vision with Simplilearn to bridge the digital skills gap in the US market,” said Jerrad Tausz, CEO of Fullstack Academy.

Talking about Simplilearn’s financial reports of last year, the startup reported a 26x rise in its consolidated losses to INR 149.9 Cr in FY21-22 as compared to INR 5.6 Cr losses incurred in the previous fiscal year (FY20-21). 

Meanwhile, its operating revenue rose by 41% from INR 479.7 Cr in FY22 against INR 340.8 Cr revenue generated in FY21. 

In the edtech space, it faces competition from edtech startups such as Scaler Academy, Udemy, Unacademy and Vedantu, among others. 

Reflecting on the state of edtech startups in India, the country’s edtech industry is presently grappling hard to stay relevant with the changing times. With the opening of schools, colleges and workplaces, edtech startups have lost a major chunk of their paid users and thus, pivoted to a hybrid model. 

Amid this, edtech startups have spent a good amount on customer acquisition and faced immense losses in the past one year. Besides, they had to undergo various cost-cutting measures including laying off around 7000 employees concertedly so far in 2022, according to Inc42 analysis.