Online learning portal Byju’s has acquired US-based digital reading platform developer Epic for $500m, facilitating an exit for e-commerce firm Rakuten.
Epic provides a digital reading platform for children aged 12 and under, offering a collection of more than 40,000 books, audiobooks and videos from 250 publishers worldwide. The platform is used by some 2 million teachers and 50 million children, it said.
Following the acquisition, Byju’s expects to consolidate its position across the US market, and plans to invest about $1bn to strengthen its presence in North America. Morgan Stanley was sole financial adviser to Epic on the transaction.
The deal came after Epic had raised more than $50m in funding. It secured $30m in a January 2019 round led by Evolution Media, the joint investment venture between talent agency Creative Artists Agency and growth equity fund TPG Growth.
Epic had received $8m in a 2017 series C round led by Reach Capital, an investment firm dedicated to the education sector, and backed by Rakuten subsidiary Rakuten Ventures, TransLink Capital, Menlo Ventures, WI Harper, Brighteye Ventures and Innovation Endeavors.
The company had previously received an undisclosed amount from growth equity firm Zillionize in 2014 before collecting $8m from unnamed investors the following year.