upGrad has completed its acquisition of Unacademy in an all-stock transaction valued at just over $200 million, closing one of the most significant consolidation deals in India’s education-technology sector. Unacademy co-founder and chief executive Gaurav Munjal confirmed the completion on September 1 following months of negotiations and regulatory review.
The combination gives upGrad a substantial position in online competitive-examination preparation, complementing its existing businesses in higher education, professional upskilling, enterprise learning and study-abroad services. Unacademy’s core portfolio spans preparation for examinations including UPSC, NEET PG and CAT, along with online learning products built around educators, recorded courses and live instruction.
The transaction was structured as a 100% share swap. When the term sheet was signed in March, upGrad co-founder Ronnie Screwvala said Munjal would remain responsible for Unacademy and continue developing its online education products. The Competition Commission of India approved the proposed combination in July, clearing the principal competition-law requirement before closure. The confirmed closing ends negotiations that had previously stalled over valuation.
The final price represents a substantial reset from Unacademy’s $3.44 billion peak valuation during the pandemic-era expansion of online education. The company has raised more than $830 million from investors including SoftBank, Peak XV Partners, Elevation Capital, Blume Ventures and Meta. Munjal acknowledged the difference between the amount raised at the market peak and the eventual sale value while stating that the company was not compelled to transact because of an immediate cash shortage.
At closing, Unacademy had annual topline of approximately Rs 400 crore and about Rs 900 crore in cash, based on figures disclosed by Munjal. He said most of its businesses were profitable or approaching profitability. The company had spent several years reducing costs, narrowing its operating footprint and concentrating resources on its core test-preparation operations after the wider edtech market corrected from pandemic-era growth assumptions.
During the earlier restructuring, Unacademy reduced the annual cash burn in its test-preparation business from roughly Rs 450 crore to about Rs 200 crore. Several examination categories, including UPSC, NEET PG and CAT, had reached positive contribution margins. The acquisition therefore combines a leaner test-preparation business with upGrad’s larger portfolio of career-linked education services.
For upGrad, the deal adds a consumer learning brand and a large competitive-exam category to a group historically centred on working professionals, university-linked programmes and corporate training. For Unacademy, the share-swap structure preserves participation in the combined business while placing its operations inside a broader education platform. Transaction disclosures put the final valuation more than 94% below Unacademy’s 2021 peak, making the closing a prominent marker of the sector’s post-boom consolidation.
