Arabian Business, Monday, Jun 22, 2020 | Zul Qaadah 01, 1441
Saudi education platform raises $13m in latest funding round
Saudi Arabia:
Noon Academy, an education
technology platform based in Saudi Arabia, raised $13 million in its latest
funding round as more students turn to online education amid Covid-19-enforced
school closures.
The pre-B funding was led by STV, the
venture capital investor that backed Dubai ride-hailing firm Careem Inc. before
its sale to Uber Technologies Inc. last year. Alturki Holding and Ahmed El
Kalla’s NFX Ventures were part of the pre-B funding.
The initial target was to raise $5m, Noon Academy said in a statement. It had
raised $8.6m in series-A funding.
Online education is booming as coronavirus-related lockdowns keep people at
home, forcing schools and students to move online.
Noon Academy, which was founded in 2013 by Mohammed Aldhalaan and Abdulaziz
Alsaeed, said since the virus outbreak it added three million students to its
platform, doubling its registered users.
“We’re aiming to bring together 50m students and tutors from around the world by
2023,” CEO Aldhalaan said in the statement.
Noon Academy currently operates in Saudi Arabia, Egypt, India and Pakistan, and
plans to open a hub in London.