Edtech Unicorn upGrad’s CEO Arjun Mohan Resigns

Arjun Mohan, the CEO of Ronnie Screwvala-led edtech major upGrad, has decided to quit the company and has resigned from his position, he said in a Linkedin post.

The departure comes at a time when edtech startups in the country are struggling with funding crunch and widening losses. The edtech space has seen thousands of layoffs in the last year as startups undertook restructuring exercises to cut costs and attain profitability.

“After almost 3 years at the helm, I have decided to move out of upGrad… While I look back on the years at UpGrad, I feel happy about the incredible company we have built which helped so many working professionals upskill. The aspects of growth and other metrics were just outcomes of giving the customers what they aspired for,” Mohan said in the post.

The development was first reported by Reuters. Mohan informed the news agency that his last day of employment will be January 15.

“I started my journey in education sector in the year 2008 and believe that still there is a lot more to be done to solve the persistent problems of access, affordability and quality. So I am in the exploration phase of what I can to do in education next,” Mohan further explained in his social media post.

Earlier, he worked with edtech major BYJU’S for over 11 years till 2020.

upGrad wasn’t immediately available to respond to Inc42’s query on the matter. The article will be updated on receiving a response from the edtech unicorn. 

Founded in 2015 by Screwvala, Mayank Kumar, Phalgun Kompalli and Ravijot Chugh, upGrad is backed by the likes of Temasek, Murdoch’s Lupa Systems, International Finance Corporation, IIFL, among other major names. The edtech platform provides higher education courses in collaboration with various universities. It entered the unicorn club in 2021. 

Despite last year’s funding gloom in the Indian startup ecosystem, which affected the edtech sector the most, upGrad was on an acquisition spree in 2022. It acquired Work Better, Exampur, International School of Engineering (INSOFE), and Harappa Education, among others, during the year. 

Meanwhile, like many of its peers, upGrad also continues to post losses. It reported widening of its consolidated net loss to INR 626.6 Cr in the financial year 2021-22 (FY22) from INR 211.1 Cr in FY21. Its standalone loss stood at INR 568.6 Cr in FY22. 

upGrad’s consolidated operating revenue rose 2X to INR 679.2 Cr in FY22. Led by the cost of acquisitions and increase in advertisement spend, upGrad’s total expenses surged 2.5X to INR 1,300.6 Cr from INR 513.7 Cr in FY21. 

upGrad-owned Harappa Education recently laid off around 73 employees, or almost 40% of its workforce. Meanwhile, sources told Inc42 that more layoffs are expected at the startup.

In August last year, upGrad raised $210 Mn in funding at an undisclosed valuation from ETS Global, Bodhi Tree, and Kaizen Management Advisors.