But as with the stock chart above, the story for education companies generally – tech and non-tech - was far more mixed. Private market activity experienced a similar surge in 2020, with U.S.-based EdTech companies pulling in $2.2 billion in 130 equity investment deals (the biggest year on record) over $1.7 billion in 2019, according to EdSurge. (NB: Tyton Partners has advised on a number of these efforts to date.) In the public markets this was evident in the performance of tech-enabled education stocks relative to their more analog cousins.įurther evidence of this enthusiasm is evident in the flurry of EdTech SPACs, including those aimed at investing in International, K-12, Higher Ed and Corporate markets, that have sprung up in the public markets.
went from a Silicon Valley fad to representing an asset class to which institutional investors of all types demanded exposure. 2020 was the year in which EdTech in the U.S. Investors piled into EdTech deciding that the acceleration in technology adoption across education markets prompted by school closures is unlikely to reverse even once the pandemic ends. Various types of EdTech businesses experienced strong demand for their equity, while more analog businesses relied on PPP loans and other debt instruments to survive the pandemic. This stark bifurcation in demand, played itself out in the education investing markets as well. On the other hand, technology products and services that enabled education to take place remotely or to bypass closed institutions experienced dramatic spikes in demand. Place-based businesses like childcare and tutoring centers and summer camps were devastated by shelter-in-place orders, and enormous uncertainty led education buyers to freeze the purchase of anything that could be delayed (like textbooks). We look forward to talking soon regarding your latest investment thesis or deal opportunity.Ģ020 was the best of times and the worst of times for companies operating in the U.S. In a fast-moving market, clients value our time-to-insight and the efficiency with which we break down and assess the key investment considerations. With the flurry of current deal activity in the market, we expect you are staying busy.
And, with considerable stimulus dollars supporting education institutions and workforce initiatives – and more anticipated – we expect the sector to remain an attractive, and relatively safe, harbor for disciplined investors. While much of the investment activity volume took the form of debt to support businesses through the pandemic, enthusiasm and interest in the sector remained strong. Even as we sprint into a new year, this month we take a quick look back at the year that was in the education investment landscape.
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