upGrad, which is growing through acquisitions and earmarked an M&A war chest of $250 million, has entered into an acquisition agreement to buy 100% of GSP for AUD 16 million with a future commitment of AUD 10 million and , the Ronnie Screwvala-promoted firm said in a statement on Monday.
GSP is set to close its current financial position at a gross trading value of over USD 10 million.
Established in 2015, the Sydney-headquartered GSP has a network of over 600 institutions in Australia, the UK, Canada and the US, and over 1,300 recruitment partners including education and migration agents, schools, exam preparation centres, alumni associations, and more .
This acquisition is the first international acquisition to upgrade and strengthens its foray into study abroad, one of the fastest growing sectors worldwide.
“As an integrated edtech leader, we span the entire gamut of what a learner needs from the age of 18-50 years, and in this, study abroad is a significant growth initiative for us – not only in India outside, which is one of the two biggest markets but also internationally for our learners,” said Screwvala, president and co-founder.
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GSP Founder and CEO Ellen Starkey said that with this deal with Upgrade, their existing partner institutions and students recruiting worldwide can expect a significant increase in quality enrollment.
With these two education leaders in key supplier and demand markets coming together, Upgrade looks to generate $100 million in revenue in study abroad business over the next three years, said Gaurav Kumar, president of corporate development and M&D at Upgrade. Aiz said.
According to a report by RedSeer, Indian students opting for higher education abroad are growing rapidly and their growth has increased 6 times from the domestic student growth in the last three years to 7.7 lakh in 2019. This is further expected to grow 2x by 2024, to reach 1.8 million who will spend $75-85 billion overseas.
With 1.5 lakh students visiting every year, Australia is one of the biggest destination markets for Indian students.
Launched in 2015, Upgrade is a leader in the online education revolution, focused on reskilling and upskilling, and has helped more than 2 million people from 50 countries to date.