ImpactAlpha, May 6 – Tens of millions of students in India attend low-cost private primary and secondary schools. The quality of education these schools provide varies significantly.
Bangalore-based Varthana offers financing to boost the quality of India’s low-cost private schools by rehabilitating facilities, training teachers and securing resources for students. Since 2013, it has supported nearly 4,500 schools teaching three million students.
The U.S. International Development Finance Corp., or DFC, has extended Varthana a $15 million loan to help the company support schools amid the COVID crisis, including help with the transition to online learning.
DFC first backed Varthana in 2016, when the U.S. development financial institution was called OPIC. Varthana’s portfolio has since grown four-fold. Varthana raised a $55 million equity round in 2018.
