Led · Series C · Jul 2023

Founded in 2017 by Akshay Chaturvedi, Leverage Edu helps students secure overseas admissions and provides related services such as education financing, visa assistance, and test preparation. The startup has expanded its presence across major study-abroad destinations including the UK, the US, Canada, and Australia. In FY26 the company reported revenue of Rs 375 crore, a 112% year-on-year increase from Rs 173 crore, and said it had turned EBITDA-positive. Leverage Edu claims a global customer base of over 175,000 users. The company plans to use fresh capital to accelerate international expansion and to grow its financial services and AI-led counselling and admissions offerings. It has signalled ambitions for a future IPO targeting a Rs 2,000–3,000 crore public issue.

Participated · Equity · Jun 2022

UpGrad positions itself as a broad integrated learning and workforce development platform spanning formal education, certification courses, study abroad, placements, enterprise training and global mobility. The company is pursuing expansion through a proposed acquisition of Unacademy, which it says would enable entry into the online test-preparation segment including UPSC, JEE, NEET and GATE. Upon closing the Unacademy deal, UpGrad is expected to receive nearly Rs 900 crore in cash, bringing its total capital pool to around Rs 1,260 crore alongside the recently closed Rs 360 crore internal round. UpGrad plans to use the combined funds to deepen its presence across online and offline learning formats in India and overseas, and to increase investments in AI-led learning products and workforce development initiatives. The company has engaged with the Competition Commission of India by filing a merger application related to the Unacademy acquisition and has been involved in months-long negotiations over the transaction terms.

Participated · Series C · Sep 2020

ApplyBoard is a Kitchener, Ontario–based international student mobility technology platform that connects students to over 1,500 institutions across Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Ireland. Since 2015 it has empowered more than 1 million students from over 125 countries. The platform supports the end-to-end study abroad journey and has expanded beyond application and acceptance to services such as language tests, loans, and proof of finances. In June the company launched its patent‑pending Generative AI advisor, Abbie, which provides personalized guidance and instant support in any language. ApplyBoard is pursuing a global expansion plan that includes launching in Germany and adding 20 new study destinations by the end of the decade. The company says the recent financing will accelerate product development, growth, and further international expansion. ApplyBoard provides a free service to students that matches and processes international applications for colleges and universities and earns money via revenue-sharing agreements when referred students enroll. The company has served roughly 200,000 students to date and has launched products like ApplyProof to help verify applicants’ documents. ApplyBoard reported 400% year-over-year sales growth in 2021; sales were $300 million in 2019 and the company said that implies at least $1.2 billion in sales in 2021. It is expanding efforts in key destination countries including the United States, the U.K., and Australia. ApplyBoard has pursued strategic partnerships—an earlier $55 million extension brought in ETS Strategy Capital, the venture arm of ETS, and that tie helped spawn ApplyProof. CEO Martin Basiri framed the company as a tech-savvy guidance counselor addressing high demand for seamless application processes after the pandemic. ApplyBoard operates an online platform that streamlines the study-abroad search, application and enrollment process by connecting international students, recruitment partners, and over 1,200 partner schools across Canada, the United States, and the United Kingdom. The company offers an end-to-end application experience and has formed a strategic partnership with ETS to integrate test preparation and admissions workflows. Founded in 2015 and headquartered in Kitchener, Ontario, ApplyBoard has helped over 120,000 students and employs more than 500 staff across 20 countries. ApplyBoard plans to use recent funds to invest heavily in its proprietary technology, further develop school and student services, expand destination markets, and serve a broader diversity of students and recruitment partners globally. Financially, the company has raised C$242M (US$180M) to date, including its C$170M Series C total after the extension. ApplyBoard operates an online platform that streamlines the study-abroad application process by connecting students, educational institutions and recruitment partners through a single application. The platform enables students to discover and apply to secondary and post-secondary institutions in Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom. By joining the platform, educational institutions expand their brand reach worldwide and recruit qualified students virtually. The company works with over 1,200 educational institutions, 4,000 recruitment partners and has assisted over 100,000 students. ApplyBoard employs over 400 staff across 20 countries and was co-founded in 2015 by Meti Basiri (CMO), Martin Basiri (CEO) and Massi Basiri (COO). The company plans to use new funding to accelerate product development, expand into new markets and improve access to education for more international students. ApplyBoard is a SaaS-enabled marketplace founded in 2015 that uses AI and machine learning to assist international students with program and institution selection, document submission, applications, and obtaining visas. The platform vets and processes applications, sending only complete and qualified files to partner schools and reports a 95 percent chance of students receiving an offer letter. Since launch it has built partnerships with over 1,200 secondary and post-secondary institutions across North America and has been used by more than 45,000 students from 100+ countries. ApplyBoard is based in the Waterloo region of Canada with offices in China, Nepal, Vietnam, and India. The company will use the new capital to further develop its AI-powered platform, accelerate expansion into new markets, and hire over 100 employees across its Kitchener headquarters and international offices. To date ApplyBoard has raised C$72 million in total funding and is focused on making education more accessible to students around the world.