Physics Wala earmarks $40 million for M&A

 Physics Wala earmarks $40 million for M&A

The company, led by co-founder Prateek Maheshwari and the strategy team, aims to become a full-stack edtech company through a number of acquisitions.

New Delhi: WestBridge Capital-backed PhysicsWala entered the upskilling segment with the acquisition of Physics Wala earmarks $40 million for M&A iNeuron.ai last week. But the purchase is just one part of Physicswala's strategy, as the company, under the leadership of co-founder Prateek Maheshwari and the strategy team, aims to become a full-stack edtech company through a number of acquisitions.

Since raising $100 million in Series A funding round from Westbridge and GSV Ventures in October and achieving unicorn status in its first fundraising, the Physicswala team has been actively seeking acquisitions to fuel the company's expansion into new businesses and markets Still working.

Following the fundraising, PhysicsWallah acquired at least three companies: online medical entrance coaching platform PrepOnline, publisher of exam preparation books Altis Vortex, and iNeuron.ai. It acquired doubt-resolution startup Freeco in August.

“We are looking to build across all categories, primarily Test Prep, Upskilling and International. Maheshwari said, “Our acquisition strategy is constantly evolving.

PhysicsWallah aims to continue expanding while remaining profitable, which is a rare feat in the world of startups. And unlike many edtech platforms, it is already profitable. Its standalone net profit grew over 14 times to ₹97.8 crore in the year ended March 2022, from ₹6.93 crore in the previous year.

Physicswala initially planned to spend up to $20 million on the acquisition. However, the company has since decided to double its budget on the acquisition. "Ultimately, we may be able to use more of the money from our $100 million fundraising to fund our acquisition," Maheshwari said.

Founded in 2020 by Maheshwari and teacher Alakh Pandey, PhysicsWallah helps students prepare for engineering and medical entrance exams through lectures and sessions on YouTube, PhysicsWallah app and its website. It competes with Byju's, Unacademy and Vedantu among others.

The company is now adding more courses to its content portfolio by developing them in-house or through strategic deals. “In terms of adding exam categories, we are looking to acquire a winner or runner-up. Alakh brought pedagogy for exams like JEE and NEET, but for other entrance exams, we need to find the right teams that have a personal connect with the students."