upGrad Aims to Buy Unacademy in All-Stock Deal; Gaurav Munjal to Stay CEO

Edtech company upGrad has signed a term sheet to acquire rival Unacademy in a full share-swap deal, which could mark a significant consolidation move in India's beleaguered online education sector.

"We at upGrad have signed a term sheet to acquire Unacademy in an all-stock deal, with Founder and CEO Gaurav Munjal staying on to build Unacademy and focus on what it does best," said upGrad chairman Ronnie Screwvala in a post on X on Sunday.

Screwvala also informed that the companies have agreed on a break fee if the deal does not close.

SoftBank-backed Unacademy’s Cofounder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Gaurav Munjal also confirmed this in a post on X. "Neither side will disclose the valuation until closing, when the papers are filed, and the transaction becomes public," he said, adding that he will remain cofounder and CEO of Unacademy.

Munjal to remain Co-Founder and CEO of Unacademy. "We share upGrad’s belief that ‘The Whole is bigger than the Sum of Parts’ and altogether we will impact students, learners and working professionals & build great Products from K12 to Forever Learning," Munjal added.

Mint reported that the valuation being discussed in the revived talks is likely to come in below the previously reported range of $300–400 million.

The deal is expected to take roughly two to three months to complete, subject to regulatory sign-off, including clearance from the Competition Commission of India, the report said.

This follows upGrad having previously walked away from acquisition talks with Unacademy, bringing one of the edtech sector's most closely watched deal discussions to an abrupt halt over disagreements on valuation.

The proposed all-stock transaction is understood to value Unacademy at around $300 million — a sharp comedown from its $3.4 billion peak in 2021 — whilst upGrad was seeking a valuation of approximately $2.25 billion for itself, as reported.

This was not Unacademy's first brush with a failed sale. In 2024, the company held discussions with Kota-based Allen Career Institute, though those too fell through over valuation differences. These setbacks came against the backdrop of a turbulent spell for the firm, which also faced internal friction over changes to its ESOP policy.