Plans to deepen IVY League partnerships and grow global footprint
Mumbai— March 31, 2017 — Eruditus Executive Education (“Eruditus”), the provider of high quality executive education programmes, today announced that it has raised $8 million (INR 52.36 crore) in its Series B round from Bertelsmann India Investments (BII). The company had earlier raised an undisclosed sum in its Series A.
The company, co-founded by Ashwin Damera and Chaitanya Kalipatnapu in October 2010, collaborates with top business schools such as INSEAD, Harvard Business School, Wharton, Tuck, MIT Sloan and Columbia Business School in bringing their professional development programs to India, Asia and the Middle East. It also partners with EMERITUS Institute of Management (“EMERITUS”) to provide online courses to middle managers. Since its inception, over 5,000 students across more than 50 countries have benefitted from Eruditus’ courses. The company plans to use the funding to add new programs with existing and new university partners as well as expand its geographical footprint to China, Latin America and Europe.
“Making world-class professional education accessible and affordable to the entire world is the mission of Eruditus” said Chaitanya Kalipatnapu, co-founder and Director of Eruditus. Our exceptional team of 100 people is based across Singapore, Dubai, India and the United States. Bertelsmann is a great partner given its global footprint, its expertise in education and its success in scaling business by working closely with the founding team. We look forward to working with them in building a great company.”
Pankaj Makkar, Managing Director at Bertelsmann India Investments, added: “Demand for high-quality educational services – particularly in the business sector – is growing fast in India and South East Asia. Eruditus meets this demand with classroom, online and blended-learning offers, giving more people access to global business education. Its collaboration with top Ivy League universities guarantees the highest quality. With Bertelsmann, we look forward to actively advancing the further development of Eruditus.”
About Eruditus
Eruditus Executive Education offers professional development programs to working professionals in India, Singapore, Dubai and other global locations in collaboration with the executive education arms of INSEAD, Harvard Business School, Wharton, MIT Sloan and Columbia Business School. Programs are delivered online or in classrooms located globally. To date, over 5,000 students across more than 50 countries have benefitted from Eruditus’ courses
About Bertelsmann Investments in India
Bertelsmann Investments unites Bertelsmann’s start-up investments around the world. The focus of its activities are the strategic growth regions of Brazil, China and India, as well as the United States and Europe. Shareholdings are acquired through the strategic investment vehicles Bertelsmann Brazil Investments (BBI), Bertelsmann Asia Investments (BAI), Bertelsmann India Investments (BII) and Bertelsmann Digital Media Investments (BDMI). Bertelsmann owns stakes in more than 100 innovative companies via these funds. Bertelsmann India Investments (BII) focuses on early stage, as well as growth stage investments in pioneering companies in the digital, education, media and services sectors. Since its official launch in 2012, BII has directly invested in 9 companies including Saavn (music streaming service), Pepperfry (online furniture marketplace) and most recently Lendingkart (digital lending platform for SMEs). Further information is available at www.biifund.com.