Classera, Global Edutech Firm Secures $40 Million in a Series A Funding Round

Classera, an international edtech business that specializes on emerging markets, has secured $40 million in a Series A round, making it the most in EdTech history for a startup.

The fundraising round is also the biggest one ever in edtech, MENA, and much of Africa.

Sanabil Investments, a fully owned subsidiary of the Public Investment Fund (PIF), served as the round’s lead investor. Other investors included Global Ventures, Endeavor Catalyst, 500 Global, Sukna Venture, and Seedra Ventures. A diversified group of investors from Silicon Valley, emerging markets, and international family offices were also included in the round.

The CEO and co-founder of Classera, Mohammad Almadani, declared: “Today represents a turning point in the Classera journey. I am privileged to have the support of such a prestigious collection of international investors and am really proud of our staff, whose passion has always been to transform the learning process. Together, we turned Classera from a small platform with few resources into a major global EdTech player. I’m happy that we helped millions of people on their educational journeys, and I hope that our evolving tale will inspire others. We are confident that the best is yet to come.

“The cash will help us advance our “LSP,” making it more intelligent, inspirational, and user-friendly for our clients and partners throughout the world. Many educational institutions are sure they require the newest e-learning technologies, especially in the wake of the epidemic. This is where Classera steps in. We want to broaden our product portfolio to more international markets, establish ourselves as the go-to partner for education and training institutions by offering a turnkey solution to all of their needs, and give its users an exceptional learning environment that helps them realize their full potential.

Classera will use the money to strengthen its position as a world leader in e-learning and EdTech and to continue developing its Learning Super Platform (“LSP”) for the education and corporate training sectors. The investment will also be used to seek more growth in MENA, the rest of Africa, and to speed up its global expansion, particularly into Asia Pacific (APAC) and other regions, through direct sales, channel partners, and acquisitions. Through its specialized platform for corporate e-training, “LeadXera,” Classera will be able to develop into that enormous market more quickly, which is one of the main goals after this investment.

The largest education technology company in MENA and most of sub-Saharan Africa, Classera teaches millions of students in more than 30 nations. The company’s LSP is a fully integrated eco-system that consists of an augmented reality learning app called C-Reality, a full ERP for educational institutions called C-Smarter, an integrated e-payment gateway called C-Pay for pocket money, tuition payments, and financing, and a specialized educational marketplace for Edtech and educational supplies called Edumalls. all under one roof to simplify the procedure and improve student involvement, and hence the learning process as a whole.

More than ten ministries of education, private K–12 schools, colleges, and businesses that use e-learning are among Classera’s thousands of clients. With regional and international players including Microsoft, Zoom, Amazon, Intel, Udemy, and HP, it has established more than 100 strategic collaborations. The business and HP jointly introduced a co-branded solution last year under the name “HP-ClassEasy by Classera,” which is currently accessible in a number of international markets.

Sanabil Investments commented on the news, saying: “Classera has created and effectively implemented a platform that reaches millions of users and has risen to become one of the top global providers of e-learning solutions for emerging markets. We are firmly committed to assisting Classera in increasing its accessibility to students from all socioeconomic situations.

During the previous academic year, Classera had one of the highest engagement metrics in the global e-learning market. Through the course of the trip, the interesting gamified platform allowed the business to secure close to 70% market share in a number of local markets, creating strong engagement and more than 10 billion page views. Classera has also won other international accolades in the Edtech sector along the way, including the Bett, The Learning Award, GESS, Microsoft Best Global Partner Award, and many others.