TutorGroup, an education provider that offers online English lessons for Chinese students in China and abroad, has raised $200 million during its Series C funding with the Russia-China Investment Fund (RCIF), Goldman Sachs Group Inc., the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation (GIC), and Silverlink Capital LP leading the funding. With its latest Series C funding, TutorGroup is valued at over $1 billion.
The education provider is planning to use the money to fund its expansion initiatives in other on-demand services as well as improve its current products and services offered to thousands of learners already. According to the China Money Network, apart from English language courses, the company plans to give medical advice, wealth management, and legal consultation services in the near future.
Jerry Huang, the Chief Operating Officer of TutorGroup, said in a press release that::
“With today’s announcement, we look forward to serving more users through the expansion of our services, as well as continuing to explore how we can extend our platform to other ‘Expert on Demand’ options.”
Dr. Ming Yang, the founder of TutorGroup, said that despite an unfavorable fundraising environment, the company has successfully attracted top investors something that proves TutorGroup’s leading status in the online education market, DealStreet Asia reports on the story.
Launched in 2004, the Shanghai-based TutorGroup offers interactive, real-time learning for students and adults across China. Its major focus is English language learning made possible through an adaptive learning technology that provides recommendations over the ideal learning pace, content and class size drawing from more than 16,000 hours of learning materials available through the TutorGroup platform.
The resources available through TutorGroup’s solutions are continuously updated and reviewed and are user-rated. In just the last decade, TutorGroup has offered more than 10 million learning sessions to learners across the world. With a presence in 60 countries and with over 6,500 teachers, adults and K-12 students in China can access English language courses through Tutor ABC and VIPABC, PEHub reports. Students from all over the world studying Chinese can access TutorGroup’s educational material through TutorMing.
Investors participating in the Series C funding commended the company for its leading technology and quality offerings. Andrew Tsuei, the founder of Silverlink Capital, spoke of an ‘impressive platform” for the delivery of English courses to students, adding that TutorGroup’s success lies in the company’s ability to blend the advantages of the sharing economy and the services marketplace.
Stephanie Hui, the Head of Merchant Banking Division Asia Pacific at Goldman Sachs, said TutorGroup has the power to meet the demand for online language learning through its innovative platform.
TutorGroup has offices in Asia as well as an R&D office in San Francisco. Alibaba, Qiming Venture Partners, and CyberAgent Ventures were among the high profile companies that led previous funding rounds.
In 2014, TutorGroup raised more than $100 million in its Series B funding with Alibaba being the chief investor. In the spring of the same year, SBI Group, a Japanese financial services group of companies, offered an undisclosed investment. During its Series A funding in 2012, the Qiming Venture Partners invested $15 million in the company.
TutorGroup, an education provider that offers online English lessons for Chinese students in China and abroad, has raised $200 million during its Series C funding with the Russia-China Investment Fund (RCIF), Goldman Sachs Group Inc., the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation (GIC), and Silverlink Capital LP leading the funding. With its latest Series C funding, TutorGroup is valued at over $1 billion.
