India’s edtech unicorn upGrad eyes Vietnamese market

India’s edtech unicorn upGrad has earmarked $30 million for expansion in Southeast Asia, including Vietnam, Deal Street Asia quoted Ronnie Screwvala, co-founder and executive chairman of the app, as saying.

The app, specializing in offering offline and online training courses and professional skill improvement, has been expanding its operation via merger and acquisitions (M&As). So far in 2022, upGrad has purchased six edtech startups, including Exampur, Harappa Education, and WOLVES India.

In August, upGrad successfully raised $210 million amid India's school reopening post pandemic. In 2021, its number of students hit 2 million. The startup aims to increase its teachers from 4,800 to 7,600 this year.

The value of the edtech market in Vietnam is expected to rise from $2.08 billion in 2021 to $3 billion in 2023, a world's top 10 highest growth, according to Ken Research, an India-headquartered market research company. The growth is expected to average 20.2% in the years 2019-2023.

As of 2021, 179 foreign edtech businesses have registered in Vietnam, with notable players like snapask, duolingo, ELSA, Quizlet, and Moodle.

Vietnam attracted $4.57 billion in registered foreign investment capital for 605 educational projects as of June 2022, according to the Ministry of Education and Training. By the end of the academic year 2020-2021, foreign-invested establishments accounted for 17% of 3,800 non-public educational institutions in the country. Notable foreign investors are RMIT University Vietnam, British University Vietnam, American International School Vietnam, among others.