Edtech giant Physics Wallah (PW) has secured $210 million in a Series B funding round led by Hornbill Capital, with participation from Lightspeed Venture Partners, GSV, and WestBridge. This latest investment has raised the company’s post-money valuation to $2.8 billion, a 2.5x increase from its previous $1.1 billion valuation after its Series A round.
The Noida-based startup plans to use the new funds to expand its services, focusing on consolidating the education market, growing into the K-12 segment, enhancing content, and potentially pursuing inorganic growth through mergers or acquisitions of community-driven education platforms.
Alakh Pandey, founder and CEO of PW, expressed excitement over the investment, calling it a testament to their mission to make quality education more accessible across India. “This investment is not just a validation of our efforts… but also a testament to the impact we have created over the years,” Pandey stated in a press release.
Expanding Operations & IPO Plans
PW is reportedly preparing for a public market debut, with plans for an initial public offering (IPO) in 2025. According to Moneycontrol, investment bankers have been invited to pitch for the IPO next week, though the final decision is yet to be made.
This comes at a critical time when edtech funding has witnessed a significant decline. Data shows that Indian edtech startups raised just $160 million across 27 deals in 2024, a sharp drop compared to $456 million in 2023, $2.3 billion in 2022, and $5.8 billion in 2021.
About Physics Wallah
Founded in 2020 by Alakh Pandey and Prateek Maheshwari, Physics Wallah started as a YouTube channel offering free education to millions of students. The company now provides a mix of online and offline courses for competitive exams like JEE, NEET, and various state board exams. Its mobile app has garnered over 30 million downloads, and more than 5.5 million students have enrolled in its paid programs.
PW has extended its operations to include skilling, higher education, and study abroad services. Its Institute of Innovation (IOI) focuses on job readiness, offering 4-year residential programs tailored to future industry demands.
The company’s flagship platform includes 112+ YouTube channels available in five vernacular languages, reaching over 46 million students.
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Financial Growth
In FY23, Physics Wallah reported a 3.3x increase in revenue to ₹779 crore, despite a 90% drop in profits to ₹8.87 crore. The firm anticipates achieving ₹2,000 crore in revenue for FY24, although official results are still pending.
Despite these financial hurdles, Physics Wallah continues to lead the Indian edtech landscape, poised for further growth and market expansion, all while preparing for its highly anticipated IPO.