VMPL
New Delhi [India], July 15: Chartered Accountant and Company Secretary Anshul Agrawal-led Ekagrata Eduserv Pvt. Ltd., which operates CA test-preparation start-up Ekagrata CA, has been acquired by Adda247's holding company, Metis Eduventures Pvt. Ltd., in a cash and equity transaction. The deal was formalised on 1 July, the National Chartered Accountants Day, which is observed to signify the contribution of CAs to the country's financial sector and economy.
Ekagrata CA has generated heightened interest among investors and peers since its launch on 29 August 2023 and the maiden batch's intake on 1 September of the same year. It is a profitable venture.
Founded by Anshul Agrawal along with fellow CAs Nishant Kumar, Jatin Dembla and Swati Agrawal (who is also a CS), Ekagrata Eduserv roped in star educators CA Darshan Jain and CA Adarsh Joshi to impart top-notch training to CA aspirants. Following itsonline success, the company opened its maiden offline centre in Indore, Madhya Pradesh, in February 2024.
"Ekagrata CA will continue as a brand after this deal, and this takeover opens up several avenues for the brand to go deeper into the CA tutoring space. Multiple edtech players have evinced interest in our business during the last 10 months. It was only after thoroughly evaluating the ecosystem in line with our ambition to take Ekagrata CA to the next level that we decided to be part of Adda247," said Agrawal, who has been teaching CA aspirants since 2011.
"All of us at Ekagrata CA are excited at the new opportunities awaiting us and look forward to imparting the topmost quality training to the new batch being enrolled," he added.
Agrawal's first entrepreneurial venture was the Zaware's Professional Academy in Pune. In May 2020, he joined Unacademy as a Leader for the CA category. He built the vertical from the ground up, and by December--just six months after he took on that responsibility--Unacademy had become popular in the CA fraternity, and Agrawal and his team were counted among India's top YouTube educators.
He launched his second venture, Ekagrata Eduserv Pvt. Ltd., in August 2023, within just three days of parting ways with Unacademy. In a span of 10 months, Ekagrata has enrolled over 20,000 students and gained over 1lakh subscribers on its YouTube channel.
"Adda247 will continue with the brand Ekagrata CA, and Ekagrata CA's Indore and Adda247's Gurugram offices will manage the operations. Our website will remain unchanged and continue to function as it exists," Ms Agrawal shared.
"All the Google Drive and pen-drive classes will continue to be conducted on Ekagrata Play App. The Ekagrata CA live classes will migrate to the Adda247 App. The transition will only enhance the learning experience without affecting the subscription for any kind of existing students," said Kumar.
"After the acquisition, Ekagrata will not start any fresh offline batch. Entire operations will be carried out online only. However, we are committed to ensuring that any of the offline students don't face any disruption. We will serve each CA aspirant as promised at the time of onboarding them," Dembla clarified.
Agrawal, along with Ms Agrawal, Kumar and Dembla, have joined Metis Eduventures. While Agrawal has been redesignated as its Director, the co-founders are Associate Directors.
"The strategic acquisition of Ekagrata CA enables Adda247 to introduce yet another stream other than the bouquet of our existing offerings. Team Ekagrata's expertise in the field is unmatched, and we welcome them to be an integral part of our family," Anil Nagar, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Adda247, said.
"The popularity of CA CS Anshul Agrawal and the brand Ekagrata CA will only enhance the value for Adda247. There could not have been a better day than 1 July, the Chartered Accountants Day, to formalise our association. It underscores the dedication the team brings in and aligns with our values," Adda247's Chief Operating Officer, Saurabh Bansal, said.
Within a week since the acquisition, there has been a spike in the enquiry and enrolment for the CA Intermediate and CA Foundation courses offered by Ekagrata CA.
ABOUT CA CS ANSHUL AGRAWAL:
A Chartered Accountant and Company Secretary by qualification, Agrawal has been teaching CA students since 2011, when he started Zaware's Professional Academy in Pune, Maharashtra. In May 2020, he joined Unacademy with the responsibility to establish its CA vertical. He built the division from the ground up, and by December--just six months after he took on that responsibility--Unacademy had become popular in the CA fraternity, and Agrawal and his team were counted among India's top YouTube educators. In August 2023, he parted ways with Unacademy and took it as an opportunity to launch his own CA-only edtech venture, Ekagrata Eduserv Pvt. Ltd., within three days. Despite having multiple offers from the sector at that time, he started from scratch to launch Ekagrata CA, which went on to become one of India's top platforms for CA aspirants.
ABOUT EKAGRATA CA:
'Ekagrata CA' was launched as a YouTube channel and mobile application on 29 August 2023 with the objective of imparting the highest quality education to aspiring CAs for Intermediate and Foundation courses. The first batch was launched on 1 September 2023 and received an overwhelming response from the students. Within a short span of 10 months, Ekagrata CA has cornered a sizeable share of this market. Upon student demand, the startup opened its maiden offline centre in Indore, Madhya Pradesh, in February 2024. So far, the edtech has a student base of over 20,000 and counting. Post the acquisition, Ekagrata CA will function under the ownership of Adda247 and be managed by Agrawal and his team.
ABOUT ADDA247:
Adda247 is India's top multilingual edtech platform, offering courses for over 500 exams and backed by investors such as Westbridge, Google, Info Edge, Asha Impact, and more. Founded in 2016 by Anil Nagar and Saurabh Bansal, Adda247 aims to make education affordable for over 500 million learners across India.
With courses in 12 Indian languages and innovative technology for low bandwidth, Adda247 serves over 40 million monthly users and has 2 million students enrolled in its premium courses. Their offerings include live online classes, on-demand video courses, mock tests, e-books and books, all tailored for specific exam preparations. Adda247 is dedicated to fostering accessibility and affordability in education, with multiple brands like Adda247 and StudyIQ, addressing specific aspirant needs.
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