Via secondary, HCL funds $20M in edtech startup Educational Initiatives

The HCL Group contributed Rs 166 crore, or roughly $20 million, to the education software startup Educational Initiatives (Ei) in a secondary round.

Additionally, the IT company will buy a minority share from private equity firm Gaja Capital in the Bengaluru-based business.

According to a press statement from the company, Ei intends to enter additional countries like Saudi Arabia, Kenya, Ghana, and South Africa. At the moment, it conducts business in the UAE, Singapore, South Africa, and India.

According to a press statement from the company, Ei intends to enter additional countries like Saudi Arabia, Kenya, Ghana, and South Africa. At the moment, it conducts business in the UAE, Singapore, South Africa, and India.

Ei is a business-to-business (B2B) company that was established in 2001 and offers educators and students in schools a range of assessment and adaptive learning tools to enhance learning outcomes.

With over a million paid users, Ei has partnerships with numerous Indian state governments, educational institutions, nonprofits, international organizations, and corporate social responsibility projects.

Under the direction of Pranav Kothari, Ei's operating revenue increased by more than 56%, from Rs 62 crore in FY22 to Rs 97 crore in FY23.  The company's earnings increased slightly over that time, from Rs 4.2 crore to Rs 5.5 crore.

September 2022 saw an investment in the edtech startup Guvi by HCL, the third-largest IT services provider in India.

Guvi received $1.9 million from HCL promoter Vama Sundari Investments. It's important to note that in 2022, HCL Technologies changed its name to HCLTech.