As of this month, Kumar has significantly reduced his role in operational matters at upGrad, as per a report by the Economic Times.
Kumar is now pitching to investors on his new startup, which is focused on employing skilled Indian labour abroad, focused on healthcare, and talent mobility.
The online higher education company, founded in 2015 by Kumar, Ronnie Screwvala, Phalgun Kompalli, and Ravijot Chugh, will see changes in responsibilities and roles, according to a person familiar with the matter.
“There will be certain role reversals within the organisation. Kumar will still be active as a co-founder and shareholder and contribute to upGrad’s strategic directions,” an upGrad official told The PIE News.
The exit will mean Screwvala, upGrad’s chairman, will take up more responsibilities at the edtech platform as it looks to complete its $50-60 million funding from existing investors at a valuation of $2.25 billion.
There will be certain role reversals within the organisation. Kumar will still be active as a co-founder and shareholder and contribute to upGrad’s strategic directions
upGrad official
While Screwvala holds a 44% stake in the company, Kumar owns 8%, and the latter’s departure from the company has not affected the shareholding structure, as per the ET report.
The report further revealed that Screwvala’s takeover of managing the firm aligns with the edtech’s plans for an IPO in India.
UpGrad’s funding round is significant in light of edtech firms closing major deals in the past few weeks.
Edtech unicorn PhysicsWallah secured $210 million in the first three quarters of 2024, while higher education firm Eruditus is closing a $150m funding round.
In June 2024, upGrad secured INR 287.5 crore in debt financing from Singapore-based EvolutionX Debt Capital to support growth initiatives and cover operating expenses.
Earlier this year, the Mumbai-based company entered advanced discussions to acquire the US education firm Udacity and aimed to raise upto $100m to finance the deal.
At that time, the company approached several external investors to secure around $50-60m, with the remaining investment expected to come from its existing backers.
The company counts Temasek, James Murdoch’s Lupa Systems, International Finance Corporation, and IIFL among its marquee investors, according to startup media platform Inc42.
Despite recent developments, Upgrad posted a 96.4% revenue growth in FY23, reaching INR 1,194 crore, though its losses increased by 76% to INR 1,141 crore.
The company’s financial results for FY24 have not yet been publicly disclosed.
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