LEAD turns 🦄, Flipkart acquires Yaantra🔁, Musk's tweet🚘
LEAD becomes first edtech unicorn of 2022, Flipkart acquires recommerce platform Yaantra, Musk tweets on India ‘challenges', Funding Deals & more.
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LEAD becomes first edtech unicorn of 2022 after raising $100 million🦄
Edtech firm Lead School has raised $100 million from investors led by GSV Ventures and WestBridge Capital, doubling its valuation in less than a year to $1.1 billion.
While most other Edtech companies offer supplemental education in K-12 or Higher education, LEAD said it is the only Edtech unicorn focused on transforming core schooling in India with its tech-integrated solutions.
The company will enter Academic Year 22-23 with 5000 schools across 500+ cities in India with an annual revenue run-rate of $80 million. It’ll serve close to 2 million students and is unique in committing and delivering measurable improvement in student learning outcomes in schools.
Founded by Sumeet Yashpal Mehta and Smita Deorah in 2012, LEAD has been transforming core schooling in India with its innovative full-stack School Edech solution. Over the years, LEAD has been making global-standard education accessible and affordable to students, especially in non-metro cities.
Flipkart group acquires electronics recommerce platform Yaantra🔁
The Flipkart group said it has bought Yaantra, an electronics refurbishment platform, to strengthen its ecommerce business and improve after-sale offerings for its customers in the smartphones segment. ‘Recommerce’ is the selling of previously owned products.
The acquisition is expected to be in the range of $40-50 million, in what is a cash-and-stock deal, according to sources aware of the matter. There will be additional rewards for the management if they meet certain milestones.
Flipkart said the acquisition will give it greater access to affordable refurbished smartphones. Among the largest online sellers of electronics and smartphones, the company has a popular phone exchange feature in which customers can trade in their old smartphones for discounts on new models.
Flipkart is estimated to have spent around $400-500 million on M&As over the last 12-18 months. It bought travel booking site Cleartrip and online pharmacy SastaSundar.
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TheMathCompany, a global data analytics and data engineering firm, has raised $50 million in investments from Brighton Park Capital.
Online gaming community platform Turnip has raised $12.5 million in a Series A funding round co-led by Greenoaks and Elevation Capital.
Allo Health, a men's sexual wellness healthcare platform has raised $4.4 million in seed funding led by Nexus Venture Partners.
Musk’s tweet on India is a pressure tactic: Govt source🚘
Getting a foothold for Tesla in India isn’t proving easy for Elon Musk. “ Still working through a lot of challenges with the government,” the billionaire wrote on Twitter on Thursday, replying to a user who wanted to know if there was any update on Tesla’s launch in the country.
Musk's tweet drew sharp criticism from the government. A source told, “With such tweets, Tesla is trying to put pressure on the government, and this is not the first time.” The source added that Musk was looking to get the government to reduce import duties without committing to produce Teslas in India.
Indian officials have made it clear that Tesla cannot ask for a duty cut without making a commitment on producing in India.
Musk has been planning to bring Tesla to India since 2019 and the company made its first moves in 2021. But talks between Tesla and the government have come to a standstill over two main issues: high taxes and Tesla committing to set up a factory and manufacture cars in India.
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