SUMMARY
Abhinay Maths will use the funds for business expansion and to increase its footprint in tier 2 and 3 cities
The move will enable Abhinay Maths to leverage Classplus’ tech stack and experience in the domain of curriculum to shore up its offerings.
The investment comes months after Classplus received the board approval to acquire another test prep startup Testbook
Edtech startup Classplus has invested an undisclosed amount of funding in test preparation platform Abhinay Maths.
The platform will use the capital for business expansion and to increase its footprint in tier 2 and 3 cities. The funding will also be deployed towards branding to accelerate the startup’s growth across the country.
The move will enable Abhinay Maths to leverage Classplus’ tech stack and experience in the domain of curriculum to shore up its offerings. The deal will enable Classplus to diversify its portfolio and increase its user base.
“Backed by our investment and technology and his academic expertise, Abhinay Sir has the potential to transform the way students learn and prepare for government exams. As he continues to break down geographical, financial, and resource barriers for students, we are excited to be a part of his journey. We look forward to a long term partnership with him,” said Classplus’ chief executive officer (CEO) and cofounder Mukul Rustagi.
Chiming in, Abhinay Maths’ founder and CEO Abhinay Sharma said, “We are thrilled to have the support of Classplus… This strategic investment from Classplus will also allow us to use the leverage of technology and provide cost-effective test prep coaching to millions of government job seekers from tier 2, 3, and 4 cities, where affordability is a major concern.”
Founded in 2017 by Sharma as a YouTube channel, Abhinay Maths have since evolved into a full-fledged test prep platform that is largely focused on competitive exams for government and banking jobs. From notching 1 Mn subscribers within 8 months of its launch, the startup has also launched an app, which has so far catered to 2 lakh students from 500 cities and towns across the country.
On the other hand, Classplus is a business-to-business (B2B) K-12 learning platform that offers full-stack mobile solutions for educators. Founded in 2018 by Bhaswat Agarwal and Mukul Rustagi, Classplus also helped Abhinay Maths roll out its app before becoming an investor in the latter.
Classplus claims to have served more than 1 Lakh educators across 3,000 cities. The startup has so far raised nearly $160 Mn in funding across multiple rounds. It is backed by other marquee investors such as RTP Global, Blume Ventures, and Times Internet, among others.
Mukul recently told Inc42 that categories such as upskilling, vocational training and test prep, especially government exams, would continue to remain popular among Indians and would flourish this year.
The acquisition comes nearly a year after Classplus raised a mammoth INR 474 Cr funding from Alpha Wave Ventures, Tiger Global and other investors. In September 2022, it was also widely reported that Classplus was planning to acquire another test prep startup Testbook after a nod from the company’s board.
India’s edtech sector witnessed a bloodbath last year as schools reopened and the demand for online courses tanked. Mourning losses and a heavy cash burn model also proved fatal as many startups were forced to shut shop or be acquired. Of the eight Indian startups that wound up operations in 2022, five belonged to the edtech domain.
