Acquisitions in the Education and Edtech Sectors in 2024
The following is a summary of mergers and acquisitions transactions in the education and edtech sectors in 2024. We will update this post every two weeks as we work with more clients and learn of other deals in the sector.
The education and edtech sectors have been off to a slow start in 2024. This is following a significant drop in valuations in 2022 and 2023 as edtech companies no longer benefited from the COVID boost in 2022, and many were no longer profitable in 2023.
For many in the industry, 2023 was a tumultuous year. Numerous deals were close to closing but fell apart during due diligence. Interest rates continued to rise, inducing anxiety around the cost of borrowing and requiring buyers to require a higher overall return on their investment, which depressed valuations.
At the same time, investors had to rethink their investment criteria due to a rash of bad decisions they made during the frenzy of the COVID pandemic. Since then, most Edtech investors opted to take a much more cautious and conservative approach after making investments at inflated valuations in 2020 and 2021 that might have made sense during COVID, but now appear ridiculous in hindsight. Post-COVID, entire segments of the education sector have been shaken up – from the increased regulation on for-profit Title IV colleges and regulations that effectively put OPM providers “on life support” to concerns about the implications surrounding the expiration of ESSER funds and the effect that will have on preK-12 education.
As a result, valuations for small, medium, and large edtech companies are back to their pre-COVID levels and are still significantly higher than valuations for traditional businesses. The average small and medium-sized edtech company is valued at 2x to 3x trailing twelve-month annual recurring revenue.
Acquisitions in the Education and Edtech Sectors in 2024
Below is a summary of the mergers and acquisition transactions in the education and edtech sectors so far in 2024. This is by no means an exhaustive list as many smaller transactions are never announced. This list only represents the deals we have learned about through our network or that we have been directly involved in. I’ll do my best to update the list every two weeks.
In September,
Novakid, a provider of online English language lessons for K-12 students, acquired Lingumi, a U.K.-based English learning app.
Savvas Learning acquired online career and technical education company Pointful Education to build out its college- and career- readiness offerings.
The online university, Western Governors University, acquired Craft Education, an education technology company that specializes in apprenticeship programs.
Savvas Learning Company, K-12 learning solutions provider, acquired Pointful Education, a provider of online career and technical education courses.
A Swiss media-centric investment firm, CosmoBlue Media, acquired Macademia, a gamified education provider for children.
TouchMath, a US-based K12 math education provider, has acquired Classworks, a K12 math EdTech firm, to expand its product offerings.
In August,
Roper Technologies agreed to acquire Transact Campus, a higher ed payment and ID company, for $1.5 billion.
IT company Climb Global Solutions acquired Douglas Stewart Software & Services, an SaaS solutions company focused on education, for $20.3 million.
In July,
Neuberger Berman, a U.S. asset manager, is close to acquiring a minority stake in Nord Anglia Education, an international network of schools. Insiders report that the Neuberger Berman will invest $15 billion in the deal. That would be the largest K-12 deal in years.
IXL Learning, the company that owns Rosetta Stone and Dictionary.com, acquired Carson Dellosa Education, a teaching supplies publisher. The amount was not disclosed.
Instructure, the public company that makes the Canvas learning management system that is used by many schools and colleges, will be taken private by the large private equity group, KKR in a transaction worth $4.8 billion. That’s the single largest edtech deal in years. At the same time, Instructure acquired student records management platform Scribbles.
School safety software company Raptor Technologies acquired payments and ticketing provider PayK12.
Intelvio, a healthcare education company backed by Eden Capital, acquired the Professional Crisis Management Association (PCMA). PCMA is a crisis management training and certification company based in Sunrise, Florida. The acquisition enhances Intelvio’s existing behavioral health offerings and expands the Company’s overall healthcare training platform.
Edwin Group, the UK’s largest provider of supply teachers, what we in the U.S. call “substitute teachers” was acquired by Quad Partners, a U.S. based private equity firm, highlighting the potential growth of solutions to address global teacher shortages.
The animation studio Hobbes was acquired by Duolingo, the very popular language learning app. No terms were disclosed.
The Indian edtech giant Byju filed for bankruptcy protection. The company will likely sell off its operating divisions and edtech products. This flood of deals on the market is likely to depress valuation of edtech companies for the next 12 months.
EdPower, a LMS provider in the U.S. was acquired by Prometric, a US-based testing and assessment provider. The terms were not disclosed.
Genius Teacher, an Indian EdTech that provides content for primary school teachers was acquired by Schoolnet, a US K12 management system.
In June,
The College of Court Reporting, an Indiana-based nationally accredited, degree-granting court reporting college was acquired by a strategic buyer that owns and operates several other vocational colleges. Jackim Woods represented the seller and arranged the transaction.
Instructure, (NYSE: INST) a Utah-based learning management software company, acquired Scribbles Software, a North Carolina-based company that provides software solutions for K-12 school districts, to bolster it’s K12 offering. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
TicTac Group, a Swedish company providing e-learning solutions, acquired Skillhabit, a Swedish AI-driven learning platform.
PepTalkHer, a New York-based coaching platform, acquired Mettacool, a Wisconsin-based E-learning and coaching platform. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Raptor Technologies, a Texas-based provider of school safety software, acquired PAYK12, an Indiana-based cloud-based education finance management company.
Children’s publisher Scholastic acquired 9 Story Media Group, which produces children’s content for $182 million.
Digital curriculum company Imagine Learning has acquired CueThink, a platform that uses artificial intelligence tools to improve students’ critical thinking in math instruction.
While not an acquisition, there is an interesting update on Byju. Investment giant Prosus says that wrote off its $2.1 billion investment in Byju’s stating they now believe its 9.6% investment in the company is worthless. This will certainly have a chilling effect on valuations in the edtech sector.
ClearCompany, a provider of human capital management software, owned by Gemspring Capital, acquired Brainier Solutions Inc. (“Brainier”), a leading provider of innovative learning management software for corporate clients. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.
In May,
PowerSchool, a K-12 software company, announced that it may go private in a $6 billion deal with Bain Capital, according to press reports. The deal is pending. We will update the details once the deal is finalized. This is likely to be the largest edtech deal to date.
Follett School Solutions acquired MasterLibrary, maker of a facility management platform. The terms were not disclosed. MasterLibrary allows districts to manage facility scheduling, work orders, fees, rentals, and reservations, as well as access, edit, and customize floor plan drawings.
Class Over, a K-12 online course provider, is being merged with Battery Future Acquisition in a $135 million deal.
Domoscio, a French adaptive learning platform, was acquired by Rise Up, a French active learning platform, to expand its offerings in the space.
Tustawi, a digital education platform in Kenya, was purchased by Castnet Learning, an online education platform. This acquisition will allow Castnet to expand its service offerings to Kenya.
95 Percent Group, a literacy curriculum provider in the US, acquired Sortegories, a language learning app for K12 students. This acquisition will expand 95 Percent Group’s digital offerings for language learning.
In April,
Basis Vectors Capital, a private equity firm focused on vertical SaaS, acquired Cadient Talent, a talent acquisition solutions provider in the hourly hiring sector , to expand their portfolio of SaaS solutions and to expand Cadient’s growth. The terms were not disclosed.
Follet School Solutions acquired MasterLibrary, a K-12 solutions provider. The amount was not disclosed.
Wonderschool acquired ChildcareMatters, a substitute teacher staffing platform. The amount was not disclosed.
LEORON Institute, a corporate training EdTech company, acquired UAE-based XpertLearning, the leading professional training and development provider in the Middle East, to expand their market expansion in the region.
The tech training and development solutions provider, GenSpark, acquired ProGrad, an Indian end-to-end sourcing, screening, and training solutions provider, to broaden their service offerings in the APAC and Indian markets.
Kangarootime, a childcare management software provider for early education centers, acquired Clay, an AI-powered lesson planner. The terms were not disclosed.
Keystone Partners, a career transition and outplacement services provider, acquired CEC, which offers certification and training for coaching careers. The amount wasn’t disclosed.
Viking Mergers & Acquisitions, a business brokerage firm, acquired Sea School, a maritime licensing and education provider.
CareerArc, a hiring and recruiting company, acquired Lumina, a leading SaaS platform for generating visual job postings at scale. The amount wasn’t disclosed.
The content curation platform, Wakelet, acquired Bulb, a digital portfolio provider used primarily by teachers and job applicants, for an undisclosed amount.
IXL Learning, creator of adaptive online learning systems, as well as the owner of Rosetta Stone, acquired Dictionary.com for an undisclosed amount.
Wonderschool, a startup that provides software and support to help individuals and local governments spin up childcare businesses, has acquired EarlyDay, which operates an early childhood educator marketplace. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
In March,
the children’s publisher Scholastic acquired 9 Story Media, a children’s content producer and distributor, for a reported $186 million.
StraighterLine, an online course provider, acquired ProSolutions Training, an early childhood education training provider, for an undisclosed amount.
The online learning platform Skillshare completed its acquisition of Superpeer. The acquisition will expand Skillshare’s on-demand course offerings. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Accenture acquired Udacity, one of the pioneers of large-scale online courses. The terms of the deal were not disclosed, but it was announced at the same time Accenture announced a $1 billion investment to create a new learning platform focused on AI, called LearnVantage. Accenture reportedly paid only $80 million for Udacity, which back in 2012 had raised over $300 million in venture capital investments.
Leeds Equity Partners acquired TouchMath, a K-8 math curriculum provider.
The U.S.-based language learning solutions provider, Wayside Publishing, , acquired Nualang, which develops tools for world language classrooms. The transaction details were not disclosed.
Kido International, an international daycare and preschool design, technology and learning company, acquired Amelio Early Education, a preschool and daycare operator. The amount was not disclosed, but is estimated to be north of $7.5 million.
Ellucian acquired EduNav, an academic planning and student success tool platform, for an undisclosed amount.
HMH acquired Writable, which provides a K-12 writing assessment and practice solution.
In February,
Communications and attendance software provider SchoolStatus acquired SchoolNow, a 25-year-old company that offers K-12 districts a website, app, and social media management platform.
Cognia, a forward thinking nonprofit organization laser-focused on improving educational opportunities for all learners, has agreed to purchase CenterPoint Education Solutions, a nonprofit organization that specializes in building cohesive education systems consisting of high-quality curriculum, aligned assessments, and expert professional learning.
CentralReach, publisher of autism software for special education teachers and caregivers, purchased New Jersey-based social and emotional learning software provider SILAS.
Podium Education, a career accelerator platform that partners with colleges to offer for-credit learning experiences to help students gain in-demand skills and work experience as part of their degree, acquired Untapped, a career opportunities software company, for an undisclosed amount.
Savvas, a K-12 solutions company, acquired Outlier.org, which offers online dual credit courses. The amount was not disclosed.
The National Association for Community College Entrepreneurship acquired SkillPointe, a skill-based career platform, for an undisclosed amount.
Avenue Growth Partners acquired a minority stake in BridgeCare, an infrastructure platform for early childhood education, for $10 million.
Google acquired Edlyft, an AI tutoring platform, for an undisclosed amount.
In January,
Oliver Solutions, a digital training platform, acquired Spiffy for an undisclosed amount.
Instructure Holdings, Inc. (Instructure) (NYSE: INST), the leading learning ecosystem and maker of Canvas, announced today it has completed the acquisition of Parchment, the world’s largest credential management platform and network.
Avathon Capital acquired Magical Beginnings, a network of early childhood learning centers in Massachusetts, for an undisclosed amount.
Google acquired Edlyft AI Tutor, an AI-powered STEM upskilling platform that seeks to make computer science education more accessible, especially for Black students.
Quantum5, an automotive training platform acquired Trivie, an AI-powered provider of a workforce engagement platform that personalizes learning content.
Avathon Capital, a private equity firm, acquired Magical Beginnings Learning Centers, a Massachusetts-based network of early childhood education centers.
ETS, the language testing company that runs TOEFL, acquired PSI, a U.S.-based language testing company. The amount was not disclosed.
Follet School Solutions, a K-12 edtech company, acquired Livingtree, a platform for fundraising management, for an undisclosed amount.
PowerSchool acquired Allovue, a K-12 financial planning, budgeting and analytics software provider, for an undisclosed amount.
Intelvio, a healthcare education company backed by Eden Capital, acquired Classward, an online provider of continuing education for aspiring and current EMS professionals. Classward’s EMS content complements Intelvio’s growing platform focused on solving healthcare employee shortages across the US.
Upgrad Education announced that it is in negotiations to acquire Udacity. It also stated that it intends to raise $100 million, a large part of which will be used to finance the purchase, according to media reports.
We will update this post every two weeks as we learn about other transactions and close more deals in the education sector.
Read our previous article for information about mergers and acquisitions deals in the education sector in 2003 or our previous article about mergers and acquisitions deals in the education and edtech sectors that closed in 2002.
About the Author and Jackim Woods & Co.
Rich Jackim is an education industry investment banker, education industry entrepreneur, and former mergers and acquisitions attorney.
For the last 25 years, Rich has been providing boutique investment banking services to middle-market companies in the education sector.
Rich also founded a successful training and certification company called the Exit Planning Institute, which he sold to a private equity group in 2012.
Rich is also the author of the critically acclaimed book, The $10 Trillion Dollar Opportunity: Designing Successful Exit Strategies for Middle Market Businesses.
Jackim Woods & Co offers skilled mergers and acquisitions advisory services to privately owned schools, colleges, and EdTech companies in both sell-side and buy-side transactions. Jackim Woods & Co has arranged over 100 successful transactions, ranging from less than one million to more than eighty million dollars in value.
If you own an education-related business and are interested in exploring your options, I would welcome an opportunity to speak with you. Feel free to contact me at 224-513-5142 or rjackim@jackimwoods.com.
