Edtech Startup uFaber Bags INR 25 Cr From JPIN, Gray Matters

Edtech startup uFaber has secured INR 25 Cr in a Series-A funding by Mastermind JPIN Capital Partners Fund and Gray Matters Capital. 

The startup said that it will use the funding to expand and increase system capacity, improve technology, and build a larger team. uFaber aims to enrol over 1 Lakh students and onboard more than 5000 trainers by 2024. 

Founded in 2015, by Anirudh Swarnkar and Rohit Jain, the startup provides customised training curricula for students. It caters to a wide range of demographics encompassing college students, professionals, homemakers, and businessmen to help them improve their English communication and soft skills. The programs include Fluent Life, eMaester, IELTS Ninja, UPSC Pathshala, and Real School.

Commenting on the investment, uFaber’s cofounder Rohit Jain said that uFaber aims to  continue advancing its expansion goals by investing in the product and the team.

Further adding to it, Smita Sircar, president & CEO, Gray Matters Capital, said that majority of the teachers that uFaber trains are women, and gives them an opportunity to work from home. These teachers hail from across 100+ small towns of India, and teach English via online mode to the youth at an affordable cost and superior efficacy.  

Digital education has been at the forefront, receiving attention from investors and government alike since the start of the pandemic. This year, during the budget speech, Nirmala Sitharaman noted that the centre is planning to create a digital library for the children of the nation to make quality books available across the country, with device agnostic accessibility. 

According to an IMARC study, the Indian e-learning market size reached $ 6.4 Bn in 2022, and is estimated to reach $14.1 Bn by 2028, exhibiting a growth rate (CAGR) of 13.7% during 2023-2028.

The digital learning sector saw a sharp decline in earning profit when institutes started opening up after the pandemic. The funding winter did not confine to the amount of the funds raised but also impacted the number of deals that came down as well. 

Inc42 found that the Indian edtech startups raised a total of $2.4 Bn across 95 deals in 2022, enduring a YoY decline of 49% and 42%, respectively.

The Indian edtech giant BYJU’S also suffered losses. In fact, over Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) violation, its office was also raided by the ED. 

However, BYJU’S has managed to cope with the downtime recently by raising $250 Mn debt funding from Davidson Kempner, and is also close to bagging $700 Mn from investors as it looks to move ahead with its plans for the public listing of its coaching chain subsidiary Aakash.

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