SCHOOL’S OUT: EDTECH SEES $1.1 BN INVESTMENT TILL AUG

The pandemic has been a major learning curve for students and educators — and investors. The education technology (edtech) sector has recorded investments worth $1.1 billion in 2020 till August — its highest-ever annual tally, which is 4x compared to last year. Investors say they will continue to see the maximum investment in 2020. High penetration of lowcost internet (4G) has made e-learning more accessible. According to the Venture Intelligence data, between January and August, venture capital (VC) investors pumped in $1.19 billion across 36 deals, against $373 million across 31 deals during the same period last year. VC is defined as investments in firms less than 10 years old. Byju’s Classes leads the table, which raised nearly $1.12 billion in four tranches between January and September.