Exclusive: Vedantu raises debt from Stride Ventures, completes acquisition of Pedagogy

Edtech unicorn Vedantu has raised Rs 19.25 crore or $2.3 million in debt and equity capital from Stride Ventures. This is likely the first infusion of funds for the Bengaluru-based company since its $100 million round, which valued it at around $1.1 billion.

Vedantu has raised Rs 19.25 Cr from Stride Ventures Debt Fund II, its regulatory filings sourced from the Registrar of Companies show. The firm’s board passed a resolution to allot 1,750 non-convertible debentures to raise Rs 17.5 crore and Rs 1.75 crore in the form of equity.

While the raised amount is not substantial, it will extend the runway for Vedantu which is going through a tough time like any other edtechs. As of March 2023, the company had a net current asset of Rs 299 crore, including cash and bank balances of Rs 39 crore, as per TheKredible.

Not only Vedantu, but Unacademy, Byju's and Cuemath have also struggled to raise any capital in the past couple of years.

Additionally, Vedantu has proposed to completely acquire the Ahmedabad-based Pedagogy by acquiring the remaining 9.32% stake in the company in a share swap deal. Following the deal, Vedantu is issuing 87,198 equity shares worth Rs 1.53 crore, to Archin Shah and Ritesh Gandhi – Co-founders of Pedagogy. The company bought stakes in Pedagogy in July 2021 which was exclusively reported by Entrackr.

Pedagogy allows its users access to popular books and digital courses from trusted publishers and coaching centres across the country for JEE, NEET, NET, CTET  and other entrance exams.

On the lines of other edtechs, Vedantu also entered into an offline fray by partnering with Vignan Institute, and launched six learning centres for higher secondary schools in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.

While the company is yet to disclose FY24 numbers, Vedantu’s revenue from operations slipped 7.8% to Rs 153 crore in FY23. According to startup data intelligence platform TheKredible, the Tiger Global-backed company narrowed down losses by 46.4% to Rs 373 crore in FY23.