24 in 2024: Education Year-End Wrap

The Indian education sector in 2024 stood as a testament to transformation, resilience, and boundless ambition. From technology-driven innovation to the growing importance of skill-based education and global partnerships, the year underscored the dynamic evolution of how we learn, teach, and grow as a nation.

As traditional segments demonstrated stability while new models emerged, the sector showed promising signs of maturity and adaptation to changing market demands. Our year-end report highlights the 24 key trends that shaped the narrative in the education sector in 2024.

Around the World:

1. Listed Players: Public market players showcased mixed performance in 2024, with a combination of dropping share prices and transformative trends.
2. US Markets: The US education market continued to be in command of global funding allocation towards the sector with robust activity by private equity funds.
3. Student Housing: Globally, the sector continued to make investors excited, with robust acquisition activity by leading private equity firms and strategic investors.

K-12:

1. PE Entering K-12: Multiple private equity firms evaluated the sector closely with an intent to engage in buyout transactions to build K-12 platforms.
2. Transaction Contours: The year saw several PE-backed K-12 platforms hit the private markets for stake-sale transactions.

HigherEd:

1. Foreign Universities: Multiple foreign higher education institutions launched new campuses in India in 2024 amidst rising flexibility in regulations.
2. Emerging Segment: Online and distance learning emerged as a strong segment in India HigherEd driven by changing student priorities and preferences.
3. New Age Schools: Several new-age tech and business schools were launched in the year, with some leveraging asset-light growth and leaner operational models as part of their playbook.
4. Entrepreneurship: The higher education ecosystem witnessed the rise of multiple entrepreneurship-focused programs in 2024.

EdTech:

1. Sector Correction: The edtech sector saw a massive market correction in 2024 with reduced funding for the sector’s incumbents, leading to market consolidation through M&As.
2. Capital allocation: Growth stage deals were resilient across India EdTech with mega deals stealing the limelight, amidst a lack of funding for seed stage rounds and valuation markdowns.
3. Shifting Focus: The ecosystem saw an increasing focus on companies with strong B2B channels, driven by increasing demand for stable revenue and low CAC business models.
4. AI Integration: The education sector saw rapid integration of AI in 2024, with diverse use cases emerging across the learner lifecycle.
5. Fall of Giants and IPO Lineup: Multiple leading players saw a decline as unsustainable business models decimated many incumbents. In contrast, multiple marquee edtech cos. announced their intent to hit the public markets.

Preschools:

1. Sector Recovery: Preschools in India saw rapid growth during the year emerging strongly from the pandemic with several strategic imperatives driving the sector’s growth.

For a detailed report on the transformative trends that shaped Indian education in 2024 — Click Here

LoEstro Advisors is an investment banking firm specializing in sell-side fundraising and M&A advisory, along with a strong consulting arm. Recognized as the #1 financial advisor in education in India, we are the advisor of choice to India’s blue-chip education businesses.

Over the last four years, we have grown to be one of India’s largest (in terms of M&A transactions) homegrown boutique investment banks, with $1.2bn+ worth of combined deals closed across education, healthcare, consumer, and technology sectors.