Ed-tech startup eShiksa tops up seed round

eShiksa, a startup which helps educational institutions manage their digital operations, has raised an undisclosed amount from Mumbai-based investment firm Mentor Capital as part of an extended seed round.

Pravin Sharma, founder and chief executive of eShiksa, said in a statement that the fresh capital will be used for geographical expansion, customer acquisition and ramping up operations.

Founded by Sharma in 2013, Jaipur-based eShiksa’s offerings span learning, administration and business. Its online modules assist educational institutes with managing students, human resources, examinations and finance, among other departments.

eShiksa’s mobile app enables parents to review the performance of their children and pay fees online.

Owned and operated by Eshiksa Technology Services Pvt. Ltd, the company gets the bulk of its revenues from institutes who have signed up for its services. eShiksa said it has a user base of 5 lakh, with more than 900 institutions across four countries currently using the platform.

The company had raised an undisclosed amount from international angel network Cross Border Angels & Experts (previously Cross Border Angels) in April 2017. 

Rajasthan Angel Innovators Network chairman and co-founder Mahavir Pratap Sharma had also participated in that round. 

eShiksa had also raised an undisclosed amount in angel funding from Dewang Neralla, CEO of Atom Technologies, an end-to-end payment services provider.

There have been several deals in the broader ed-tech sector in recent months.

Earlier this week, quiz-based learning startup iChamp secured an undisclosed amount in a pre-Series A funding round led by Raju Shukla, chief executive officer at Singapore-based Ariana Investment Management.

Byju’s, India’s best-funded ed-tech startup, saw its valuation cross the $5 billion mark earlier this week when it raised $31.3 million in a fresh round of funding led by existing investors General Atlantic and Tencent Holdings. 

Last December, Byju’s had announced a fundraise of $540 million (Rs 3,855 crore then) in a round led by South African technology conglomerate Naspers. 

Toppr, another well-funded ed-tech startup, had raised $35 million (Rs 245 crore then) in a Series C funding round from new and existing investors last December.